DragonBall GT Revised
by Kaboom Krusader
Summary: Think GT could have been done better? So do I. Here's my version of the story, complete with improved story arcs, filled plot holes, and zany humor. Rated T for violence, mischief, and some mild language.
1. It's My Match

******DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter One - "_It's my match, and I'll be late if I want to_!"

"All right, folks! Are you ready for the grand finale?"

The crowd responded with wild cheers of excited approval. The announcer raised his left arm, his right holding his microphone.

"Then strap yourselves in and prepare for a wild ride, 'cause we're about to start the final match of the 31st Tenkaichi Budokai!"

Five years ago, he'd taken over this position after his father's retirement, and he loved it just as much as his begetter had. Few people ever had the opportunity to witness the sheer amount of skill, power, and excitement as close-up and personally as he did every year. The event this time around had produced a turnout worth the three-year wait. A few certain exceptional fighters, whom he'd watched compete several times as a boy, and been told marvelous stories about by his father, had attended and signed up to compete after years of absence. Now, two of the most spectacular of them had progressed to the final rounds, and based on what he knew, it was going to be a match well worth waiting for.

He spoke into his mic again. "Will the two final contestants please enter the ring!"

One of the expected individuals casually walked out from the sidelines. Slightly shorter than average but possessing a strong build, his arms were folded apathetically over his muscled torso. His slightly aged face, adorned with a defined widow's peak to his spiked, dark black-brown hair, and piercing, jet-black eyes, wore a slight scowl of either disinterest or annoyance. Rather than walking around to and up the ring's stairs, he chose to jump from his standing position, seeming to float down the few feet onto the ring's tiled surface.

"Ah, Mr. Vegeta!" The announcer greeted him. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Vegeta responded brusquely. "Where's Kakarrot? Are we fighting, or what?"

"Kakarrot . . . ?" It took him a second to register. "...Ah, do you mean Contestant Son Goku? Wasn't he down ringside with the rest of you?"

"No, of course not, I wouldn't have asked otherwise," Vegeta responded, appearing annoyed. "Dammit, Kakarrot," he said, looking around while speaking to himself. "What did you do, _forget_?"

"Well, let's see," The announcer mumbled, before speaking into his microphone again. "Attention, contestant Son Goku! If you are anywhere in the arena, please report to the ring in the next ten minutes, or you will be disqualified by forfeit!"

He turned to look at Vegeta again. The scowl had intensified.

"Um..." He spoke into the mic yet again. "Will the arena staff please attempt to locate Contestant Son Goku..."

* * *

Little did anyone know, that in one of the arena's luxury waiting areas reserved for its contestants, a disastrous discovery of epic proportion was being made.

"Chi-Chiiii..." A pathetic voice called from within the bathroom.

The woman in the main room sighed at the pitiful sounding of her name, and replied exasperated.

"Be right there, honey..."

She crouched down to the infant who had been crawling around at her feet. "C'mon, Gosan," She said, as she hefted her grandson into her arms. "Let's go an' save your Grandpa..."

"Bwah!" Gosan replied happily, as grandma picked him up.

Chi-Chi walked into the bathroom, to see Son Goku, her husband of almost forty years. He was only half-dressed, having been in the bathroom freshening up before his match. But now, he was simply looking into the mirror and pouting. He turned to face her dejectedly.

"Chi-Chi..." He whined. "They're startin' to sag..."

"Welcome to my world," she absent-mindedly replied, paying more attention to Gosan. A second later, though, she realized what he had just said.

"Wait... what?"

Goku tilted his head down, and pointed to his hair.

She looked, and was that he was right. His spikes of hair, almost as much his trademark as his massively inhuman strength, were indeed beginning to lose the firm, jagged edge that they had always had.

"See?" Goku said sadly. "It's happening t' Vegeta, too. Our hair's saggin', and we're growin' hair places we didn't before. Vegeta had a little beard for a while, but Bra made 'im get rid of it..."

"Well," Chi-Chi said, moving closer to Goku. "I guess even Saiyans have to get old eventually..."

"Well, gettin' old sucks." Goku said, folding his arms and pouting further. "Vegeta's gettin' wrinkles, too. _Wrinkles_!"

Chi-Chi glowered playfully, and raised an eyebrow.

"Uh, not that there's anything wrong with a few wrinkles, Chi..." Goku said, correcting his mistake. "I mean, they look good on _you_..."

"Quit while you're ahead," she said, angling her face up to give Goku a quick peck on the cheek. "Don't worry, I still love you."

Goku smiled and returned the kiss. "I love you too... but still, aging like this, Vegeta and I are startin' to lose our power a bit, too..."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It's not much of a problem, yet, but we don't gain lots of power th' way we used to any more, and what we do have is gettin' harder to use." He made a fist, and lightly pounded it into his hand. "That's why we both signed up for the Budokai this year. For one last match while we're still pretty much even..."

"Come t' think of it, hon," Chi-Chi said. "Your match is soon, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Goku replied, scratching his head. "I forget, when does it start...?"

"**IT STARTED FIVE MINUTES AGO**!"

Surprised by the sudden outburst, Goku and Chi-Chi both turned around, where there in the doorway stood Pan, their fourteen-year-old granddaughter. She was panting slightly, having apparently rushed here at top speed.

"Pan!" Goku and Chi-Chi remarked simultaneously.

"Paaa!" Little Gosan exclaimed at his big sister's appearance.

"Grandpa!" Pan yelled, annoyed. "What are you doing! Vegeta and everyone else are waiting for you! You're gonna get disqualified if you don't hurry!"

"What?" Goku said, his face suddenly and comically twisted into an expression of panic. He darted out into the main room, grabbed his dark blue gi top and with some difficulty managed to wrestle it on and fasten it down with a white belt. Once that was accomplished, he sat on the couch and began hurriedly donning his boots.

"C'mon, hurry up!" Pan jumped up onto the couch beside him, egging him on. "You've gotta get out there and get Vegeta back for me!" Indeed, Vegeta had been matched up with Pan earlier in the tournament, and had opted to prolong the match by teasing and evading her for a good ten minutes, before swiftly winning with a ring-out. Pan had been left kind of bitter.

"Okay!" Goku said, standing up fully dressed and prepared. "I better get over there! Pan, get your grandma to her seat quick, so she can see the fight, okay?"

"Okay, just go!" Pan barked.

Goku raised a hand to his face, and touched the index and middle fingers to his forehead. Then in the blink of an eye, he vanished, homing in on Vegeta's _ki_ to teleport to the arena.

* * *

"Well, folks" The announcer spoke into his microphone, "While we're waiting for Mr. Son, why don't we take a look at a quick recap of the semifinal matches!" At his word, the giant screen adorning the arena lit up, and displayed the faces of the eight contestants. Two at a time were singled out as he spoke.

"The first match was the mighty sumo wrestler, Yoyo, versus Son Pan! Pan won by a knockout with an impressive physical combo!" The two fighter's profiles were displayed on the screen, tomboyish little Pan appearing frail and tiny compared to the hulking brute that was Yoyo.

"The second match: Son Goku versus Oob! A spectacular match, with Goku not holding anything back against his own young pupil to gain an impressive win!" Goku's familiar, grinning face was displayed on the screen, next to that of his meek student.

"Third was Vegeta versus Ichitaro!" Vegeta's smugly grinning profile was displayed next to that of the young martial artist. "Vegeta edged out a decisive one-hit knockout!"

"The fourth match was Mr. Boo versus Grunkon!" Boo's eternally smiling face showed next to the burly, unshaven fighter. "Boo won with a single headbutt!"

Vegeta tapped his foot impatiently. The announcer went on.

"The next stage of the semifinals! First fight was Pan versus Vegeta! Both displayed an impressive amount of style and finesse, but Pan was unable to lay a finger on Vegeta, before losing by a ringout!

"The last semifinal match, Goku versus Boo! It was a close, thrilling fight, with Goku winning by Boo's forfeit! And now here we are, awaiting the arrival of Mr. Goku for his sure-to-be thrilling match with Vegeta!"

The announcer leaned aside to Vegeta. "Well, I've done all I can," he said. "He's got less than a minute left. If he doesn't show up..."

Vegeta was none too pleased by the situation. "Rrrgh," He said. "Damn you, Kakarrot!" He stamped his foot angrily. "What the hell ar-"

Suddenly, Goku, appeared out of thin air right in front of Vegeta, startling the older Saiyan.

"Aaugh!" Vegeta exclaimed.

"Huh?" Goku responded, looking around confused. "Oh, hey, Vegeta. Sorry I'm late..."

"Whatever," said the announcer, after staring dumbfoundedly at the contestant's sudden, seemingly-magical entrance. "Since you're here, I guess we can get started!" He spoke into his microphone once again. "Alright, ladies and gentlemen, Contestant Son Goku has arrived in the nick of time! Leeet's get ready to rumble!"

Goku and Vegeta each walked to their positions at opposite ends of the arena, then turned to face each other.

"Hey," Goku said. "Didn't you say last time that we'd need a whole planet for our fight?"

Vegeta smirked. "That's right, I did," He replied. "But don't think this is the fight I was talking about. We'll have that later. Consider this a warm-up round," He made a quick, dismissive gesture at the crowd. "...and just to put on a good show."

Goku smiled. "Works for me."

"Contestants, get ready!"

The two took their fighting stances. Goku faced Vegeta with his left side, his legs spread out to the front and back, while leaning forward, and positioned his left arm down by the ground and his right in the air. Vegeta took a slight crouch, holding his left hand up by his head, palm-forward and ready for defense, while his right was back behind him, poised for the counterstrike.

"Ready?" Vegeta inquired.

"Ready!"

"...and...**begin!**"

The gong was struck, and the two fighters charged.


	2. Leave it to Pilaf

**DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED  
**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Two - "_Leave It To Pilaf_"

_Damn, this is a long climb._

That solitary thought kept cycling through Mai's mind as she and her two companions continued their arduous ascent. Her associate, Shu, was holding up the rear, while their esteemed and most likely senile leader, the "great" Emperor Pilaf, led the pack.

For nearly twenty years now, neither she nor Shu had seen heads or tails of Pilaf. The two former comrades had kept some contact during that time, sending Christmas cards and such, and Shu had been invited to Mai's granddaughter's christening but couldn't make it because he was getting a bad cyst removed that in a day or two and would be bedridden for the rest of the week. Overall the two lackeys had kept somewhat in touch, but they had heard practically nothing of their leader.

Until, just one week ago, he had unexpectedly contacted them both, calling them into action. He claimed that he had finally learned of a surefire way to obtain their, or his, ultimate goal: the Dragon Balls.

Naturally, the first thought that came to either of their minds was... "He's finally cracked." Nevertheless, they agreed to join him in this one last excursion, partially for old time's sake, and partially because Pilaf would've thrown a tantrum otherwise. He had always been prone to doing that.

Once the three had met up earlier that day, Pilaf had gone over the plan. Through years of extensive and exhausting research, he had stumbled across proof of a secret place with supposed connections to the Dragon Balls. It was a marvelous palace in the sky, amazingly supported by a single, sky-spanning wooden pillar. For some reason, the structure had remained virtually undetected by any private or military observation, and Pilaf had only learned of it through careful research of ancient documents, as well as almost crashing into the pillar with his sky car. Nevertheless, Pilaf was sure the place was harboring the Dragon Balls, or at least would provide a solid lead as to their position.

A far-fetched plan, to say the least. But Mai and Shu, more out of pity than loyalty, had agreed. Besides, Pilaf had even gone to such lengths as to dig out and dust off the trio's old armored mechas. The two had always sort of enjoyed using these things, even if they were a bit cramped. Or rather, _extremely_ cramped after some two or three hours of nonstop climbing. After sneaking through the small village in which the pillar was based, the three had manned the machines and begun to climb. And climb, and climb, and climb. For two straight days now, they had been steadily scaling the tower, eating as they ascended and stopping only to sleep at night, with their mechas securely clamped onto the pole. It seemed like it would never end...

"Come on, you two! You're falling behind again!"

Pilaf's voice snapped Mai back to attention. Apparently, her being lost in thought had slowed her down, and Pilaf was a good twenty yards ahead of her and Shu. "Uh, sorry," she said, and re-quickened her pace.

A few seconds later, Pilaf suddenly burst into an excited ramble.

"Oh!" he yelled. "There! I see it!"

Mai had to squint for a few seconds before it would come into focus for her. It was still a ways off, but she could indeed see something circular perched far at the high end of the pillar.

"Well I'll be," Shu said. "There really **is** something here."

"There'd better be," Mai replied. "There's no way we could climb this thing so long and **not** find anything at the end..."

"Would you two hurry up? My hour of immortality is at hand, here!"

"Oh!" The two exclaimed in unison. Pilaf had already halved the gap between them and the palace. The two quickly climbed after him.

A few minutes later, the three had finally reached the structure. On the bottom were four holes, each just large enough to allow a person access into the structure. After some difficulty in getting out of their mechas and reducing them to capsules while still hanging from the pillar, the three heaved their way up inside and carefully began exploring.

It was a simple, spartanly-decorated room, which seemed to be a mix between storage and living space. There were some futons, a bathtub, a half-dozen large jars filled with gathered rainwater, a good amount of wooden boxes holding a variety of things, and some variety of small plants being grown along the edges of the several long windows. Over on a far wall, an arched doorway led outside and up a flight of stairs.

"Hmmm..." Pilaf commented after a minute or two of aimless examination. "It's smaller than I expected."

"Just how big you were expecting it?"

"Well," the little blue man grumbled. "You'd think the domain of a god would be a little bit more... majestic."

"Say what?" Both lackeys recoiled in surprise. "You don't mean.."

"Exactly! The old legends say the temple of the almighty Kami himself rest high in the sky above the Land of Karin! Kami, the creator of the Dragon Balls himself! He must have taken them back to his palace. It's the only possible explanation for their disappearance!"

"What're you guys doin'?"

This time, all three of the intruders were startled, swiftly turning around to face their newfound host. In the doorway stood a squat, squinty-eyed man in samurai garb. He held a half-eaten apple in one hand, and the other was casually placed on the handle of the katana sheathed and hanging from his belt. His chubby, mustachioed face jiggled when he spoke in his high-pitched, gruff and nasally voice.

"You din't climb up here yerselves, didja?" He inquired, despite obviously already knowing it was so. "Used the machines? Karin ain't gonna like that."

"Yajirobe!" Another odd voice called down from the top floor outside. "Bring them up here!"

"Alright, alright, quit orderin' me around! Geez, just 'cuz he finally gets some NEW visitors other 'an the usual bunch, he starts actin' like he's the boss o' the world..." He motioned to Pilaf and company. "C'mon, then. Le's go."

He turned around and proceeded up the stairs, with the trio of intruders meekly following. The staircase angled up around the side of the top-shaped structure, and came out to a covered, open-air deck. It was spacious, and adorned with a circle of ornate pillars and a structure that looked like a fountain at first glance in the middle. But what stood out most of all was the lone figure standing in the open waiting for them. It was a stout, white, anthropomorphic cat. He calmly stood there, grasping a firm-looking walking stick and sizing up his visitors.

"Well well, I thought your ki felt familiar." He cracked a slight smile. "Emperor Pilaf and company, correct? Haven't seen or heard from you guys in a _long_ while."

Two out of the group were amazed.

"Well I'll be," Mai exclaimed. "A talking cat!"

"How bizarre," commented Pilaf.

"... It's not THAT weird," Shu put in.

"Ahem," the cat interrupted. "Anyway, I'm Karin, the master of this lookout tower. Even though it doesn't matter, since you cheated in climbing and all, I suppose I'll still ask what your business is here. You after the Holy Water?"

"What I'm after," Pilaf retorted, suddenly regaining a portion of his confidence. "Is the Dragon Balls!"

"Oh ho ho..." Karin chuckled. "You don't say."

"They've somehow been rendered undetectable by my radar," the blue crone continued. "So I've come straight for their source: Kami himself!"

"Huhuh, Kami?" The one named Yajirobe exclaimed. "You touched in th' head or sumthing?"

"I wouldn't be surprised," Karin said. "Anyway, I'm afraid I have bad news for you, Mr. Pilaf. First," he motioned around him. "If it's Kami you want, you're looking in the wrong place."

The three commenced freaking out, the leader in particular. "What? You're telling me, all that research was for nothing? The ancient scrolls are worthless?"

"Haha, well, not quite," Karin used his stick to point straight upwards. "You see, Kami's temple is actually one level further up. My home here is a pit stop, of sorts."

"Aha, is that so?" Pilaf brightened up again, clenching his fists in devious determination. "Excellent, I'll simply continue climbing and..."

"I doubt it," Karin interrupted, pointing upwards again. "There's nothing connecting here and there but skinny old Nyoi-Bo, and the distance is at least twice as far as here to the ground. Even with your machines, there's no way you could climb it. And besides," He brought his arms behind his back. "You could say my place is more of a 'toll booth' than a 'pit stop' in concept. If you want to go up and see Kami, then you have to gain MY approval."

"Yeah, no way that's happenin'," Yajirobe interjected. "I don't hafta be able t' read ki to know you bunch are up t' no good."

"Shush, you!" Karin reprimanded. "But he's right. You cheated to get HERE in the first place, and while I have some sympathy for your lackeys, there's no way your intentions are anywhere near pure." He turned around and walked over to the edge, casually gazing out into the sky. "Go home. You're lucky I don't have Yajirobe here toss you over the edge."

Pilaf was steaming, his blue face turning purple with anger, as he exploded into another tantrum.

"No, no, no! Nobody denies the majestic Emperor Pilaf!" He squealed as Karin and Yajirobe mostly ignored him, and his own lackeys wished they could do the same. "If you won't allow me up, then I'll just go through you by force!"

"By force, you say? Let me tell you something," Karin casually explained. Before Pilaf's eyes, he suddenly vanished out of sight, and reappeared behind the tiny would-be tyrant. "I don't manage the checkpoint for a god's home for nothing. Great warriors a hundred times stronger and faster than you have spent years just trying to lay a finger on me and failed." Pilaf quickly turned around, but by the time he did so, the hermit cat had already shifted back to the other side in the blink of an eye. "So when I tell you to go home... You'd best do it."

* * *

"Oh, there they are, Grandma!"

Chi-Chi squinted and scanned the crowds in the direction her granddaughter was pointing, but she couldn't see anything. Shifting baby Gosan's weight to support him with one arm, she raised her other hand to shield her eyes from the sun. _Darn it,_ she thought. _My eyesight must be_ _gettin' bad._

"Pan, honey," she said. "Are you sure? I don't see 'em anywhere..."

"Oh, well, actually," Pan replied meekly. "I didn't actually see 'em at first... Piccolo just spiked his ki a bit so I could sense where they are."

She leaned in next to Chi-Chi, and pointed again as accurately as she could.

"See? They're all the way over there."

After straining her eyes for another few seconds, Chi-Chi finally noticed two small, green dots, most likely Piccolo and Dende, almost entirely blended in amongst the crowds, clear on the other side of the stadium.

"Good heavens, Pan," she exclaimed. "You could see 'em all the way over there?"

"Yeah," Pan replied. "See? Dad's waving to me."

"...He is?"

_Then again, maybe it's not just my eyes,_ Chi-Chi thought. _I forget how special all these Saiyans are..._

On that thought, she looked down at the arena to the match in progress as she and Pan continued their walk. For at least a good five minutes, her husband and Vegeta had been duking it out royally...

* * *

...And loving every second of it.

Goku's left foot made the slightest contact with an arena tile, and he pushed himself off to the right in order to dodge Vegeta's punch. Vegeta quickly followed with a roundhouse kick, but Goku used his momentum to go into a backflip, arcing himself up out of the blow's path.

He looked forward to see Vegeta thrust a palm in his direction. Goku crossed his arms tight in front of his face, clenched his eyes shut, and withstood the quick burst of ki Vegeta launched in his direction, though it knocked him back a few feet. He reopened his eyes, and saw Vegeta charging straight at him, his arm cocked back for a solid punch. Goku could block it, but the force of the impact would likely send him out of the ring. Goku thought fast; he had to do something to deter Vegeta's attack. A split second later, he knew exactly what to do.

"Broly!" He shouted.

At mention of the Super Saiyan from whom he had once received a royal beating, Vegeta's face contorted slightly, and he flinched for only a split second. But that was all the time Goku needed. He extended his arms outward, and with a quick "kyah!" he sent out a quick wave of ki, canceling his momentum, and knocking Vegeta back slightly. The two touched down back into standing positions. Vegeta was visibly annoyed, and Goku was chuckling.

"That was a dirty trick, Kakarrot."

"Heh heh, Sorry, Vegeta," Goku chuckled apologetically. "It was all I could think of."

After a few seconds' pause, Vegeta suddenly smirked. The confused Goku, barely had time to utter a "huh?" before Vegeta shifted into a full-blown charge. Goku put up his guard in plenty of time, until...

"Super 13!"

At mention of the Android that had once delivered a mountain-shattering blow to his groin, Goku's face contorted **a lot**, and his hands instinctively whipped downward to protect his nether regions. This, of course, presented Vegeta just the opening he needed to deliver a powerful punch to Goku's jaw. Goku barely recovered from the blow in time to teleport out of his direct path out of the ring, phasing in on the other side of the arena and skidding to a crouched halt on the other side.

"Heh, heh..." Goku said, smiling while rubbing the point of impact. "Touché..."

Vegeta returned the grin. "Do you even know what 'touché' means, Kakarrot?"

Goku continued smiling for a moment before standing up straight, staring off into space, and scratching his chin.

"Uh... actually, I ain't sure. Bulma told me once. Something about-"

"Payback!" Vegeta announced, while landing a roundhouse kick to the distracted Goku's head.

"Waaaaugh!"

* * *

"Retreeaaaat!"

_Best words I've heard all day,_ Mai cynically thought. She and Shu had just spent a good ten minutes fruitlessly scampering around trying to apprehend the guardian cat, but it was useless. Like baby turtles trying to catch a cheetah. He and even his chubby roommate had made fools of them the whole time, before Pilaf finally decided to cut their losses and run. The two made haste in following him out onto the railed stairway, and luckily, it seemed neither of their would-be hosts were pursuing them. Evidently, they had assumed Pilaf had given up. They were wrong.

"Quick!" Pilaf ordered. "Onto the roof!"

"The ROOF?" Shu was confused and irritated. "We want to go DOWN!"

"Noooo!" Pilaf whined. "I'm not giving up!"

Exasperated, the two henchmen saw no other choice. Trying their absolute best not to look down at the looming Earth, they quickly worked together to heave Pilaf above, and then awkwardly climbed up themselves. The roof gently curved up in a slight dome shape up to the topmost point. From there, a thin, familiar-looking pole rested attached in the center at one end and was extended straight up, seeming to stretch on for eternity into the sky.

"Hey, whaddya think you're doing?" The one named Yajirobe poked his head out and called up to them. "We toldja you can't go any further, now quit causin' trouble!"

Ignoring him, Pilaf extracted his capsule case from his pocket, and looked over the half-dozen or so capsules that lay within.

"I sincerely hope," Mai lamented. "That you're getting out a sky-car or something..."

"Even better," Pilaf sneered, identifying the capsule he was after. He plucked it out from the case, pressed the button on its top, and tossed it towards the center of the roof. With a loud POOF sound, the capsule opened, revealing...

"A rocket?" Shu exclaimed.

Indeed, it was familiar to all three of them. A small, special-model escape rocket, with seats for all three of them. It had been one of their prototypes back in the day, and was still in the testing phase when Pilaf castle had been destroyed. Looks like it was about to get one more test run.

"You had a rocket this whole time," Mai twitched angrily as she spoke through clenched teeth. "But you made us spend TWO WHOLE DAYS climbing up here in the mechs?"

"Well," Pilaf pouted. "I didn't want to waste the fuel..."

"A rocket?" Yajirobe remarked, quickly peeking his head out over the edge to look, before descending again. "O' boy... Hey, Karin! They got a rocket!"

"Quick, you fools," Pilaf panicked. "Get in! We have only a matter of seconds!"

Shu and Mai weighed their options. They were here, miles above the ground. Pilaf was telling them to go up further, but they wanted to just go back down. However, they couldn't climb back down the pole without their mechas. Pilaf had all the capsules.

_WHY did we let him carry the Capsules?_

That was all they could think, as they solemnly joined Pilaf in the rocket. They fastened themselves in, closed the glass hatch, and silently prayed as Pilaf enthusiastically pressed the big red button.

"Liftoff!"

* * *

"Mom! Dad!"

Gohan and Videl turned to see their daughter standing with Chi-Chi in the adjacent bleacher aisle, holding their baby son in one arm and waving with the other. They waved back.

"Hi, honey," Videl replied, and motioned to two empty seats next to her. "We saved seats for you and Grandma!"

"Cool!" With that, Pan turned, grasped Chi-Chi's hand, and took flight, quickly floating over to and dropping her grandmother into her seat. "Ah!" Chi-Chi exclaimed at the sudden movement.

Pan dropped down into her own seat, and then lightly tossed Gosan clear over their mother and into Gohan's arms. The baby squealed as he was caught, and after happily giggling for a moment, he noticed and turned to look at the green-skinned warrior in the next seat.

"Pil-lo!"

"Ha!" Gohan said excitedly. "Didja hear that, Piccolo?"

"Yes, I heard it..."

Gohan held his son up next to Piccolo's head. "He knows you! Sure, he called you 'pillow,' but still..."

Gosan apparently decided to take the tired old 'marshmallow dream' joke to a new level, and began to toothlessly gnaw on Piccolo's ear.

"..."

"Huh? Oh, hello, how are you?"

His ear being stretched somewhat, Piccolo turned to Dende next to him.

"What was that, Dende?"

* * *

"I'm fine, Dende, thank you."

Karin stood at the rail of his tower, enjoying the cool breeze while telepathically carrying a conversation with Earth's god.

"How's the Budokai going?"

"_Oh, very well. Goku and Vegeta are in the final match."_

"Hm. Never woulda seen that coming."

"_Oh, they've put on a great show so far. They're matching each other and having fun."_

"Sounds Nice, wish I'd have gone." Karin made a slight cough. "Ahem. Anyway, Dende, I'll say what I need to so you can get back to the fight. A coupla goofy-looking characters made it up the tower to my place, snooping around looking for the Dragon Balls, of all things."

_"Ah, is that so?"_

"Yes. First off, they didn't climb up fair and square, and on top of that, their intentions were no good. So naturally I told them to just go home, without giving them the time of day."

_"Yes, of course."_

"And, uh... that's sorta where the problem starts. Turns out, they were packing a rocket, and when I took my eyes off them... They sorta shot straight up for the temple before I could do anything about it."

_"I see..."_

"Normally you or Piccolo would be able to just bounce them right back down, but since you're at the Budokai..."

* * *

"_... I'm sure even if they reach it, Mr. Popo can take care of them before they cause any trouble."_

"Um, but Karin..." Dende turned to his right side, where the jolly Mr. Popo was enthusiastically munching on some popcorn while watching the match. "Mr. Popo's here with me..."


	3. Wrong Places

_This chapter (and likely several following it) is dedicated to Puff (2003 – 2007) – Rest In Peace_

******DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Three_ -"Lookin' for Dragon Balls in All the Wrong Places**"**_

"...Hello?

Pilaf peeked his head into the door, looking down each end of the hallway. So far, there was nobody in sight. He turned and motioned for his followers to... follow.

"The coast is clear," he relayed. "Come!"

"Will you just wait?"

Mai and Shu were sitting out on the deck, hyperventilating. Neither had yet recovered from the ride on the rocket.

"How can you be so relaxed?" Shu demanded.

"That thing shot us up here, at least a few miles, in less than a minute!" Mai said, between pants. "My eyeballs feel like they were pushed to the back of my skull!"

"How can someone your age be so fine after that?" Shu pleaded. "Give us a bit of time to recover!"

"No!" Pilaf stomped his foot angrily. "I want my immortality _**now**_!"

The two sighed in exasperation.

"Fine," Mai said, hoisting herself up and walking towards the hall entrance. "Let's go, Shu."

"Okay..."

The three commenced to work their way into the bowels of the mysterious Temple. Unlike the pit stop they'd visited before, this place was remarkably big, and for a good fifteen minutes they wandered throughout the hallways, inspecting various rooms, closets, nooks and crannies. Yet there was no trace whatsoever of the Dragon Balls. Before long, the three sat idly in small, circular hallway in the bowels of the Temple, feeling defeated.

"Aaaah!" Pilaf protested, waving his arms around in frustration. "This isn't fair! They **have** to be here somewhere!"

"Really?" Shu asked. "What makes you so sure?"

"Something's just screwy. There has to be SOME reason why they're not visible on the radar."

"You think Kami might have changed them somehow?"

"It's possible, I guess," Shu responded.

"In that case," Mai pondered. "it would explain why they aren't showing up on the radar. Maybe," she looked around. "Instead of looking for the Dragon Balls themselves, we should look for some sort of clue as to what happened to them." She stood and stretched her aging, cramped back.

Pilaf did the same. "I agree. Perhaps some sort of journal, equipment, or something..."

'Well, I did find this old map..."

Pilaf and Mai slowly turned to their comrade, glaring.

"Looks like it's a full floor plan of this place." Shu said, whipping out the dried old parchment. "It appears we're right by this one hidden room, and - "

"When did you find that? Mai demanded.

"...About ten minutes ago, why?"

Pilaf held out his hand. "Gimme."

* * *

Trunks idly tapped his fingers on his desk, staring inattentively at the scattered documents that laid upon it. The dullness of this job was insane to begin with, but on a day like this, when there were so many things he'd rather be doing, it was far worse. At this moment, all the current crucial issues that concerned Capsule Corporation, ones that could cost the company millions of Zeni, and make or break his career as its Vice-President, didn't mean squat. The factory expansion plan? Phooey. Crucial supply shipment to the Yunzabit Space Observatory? Baloney. The high-speed sky-car patent issue? Who cared.

Trunks' work may have been right in front of him, but his mind was a million miles away. Or at least, about a couple hundred miles southeast, on Papaya Island. He couldn't believe it. Pan, Boo, and even Goku's student, Oob, were all participating. For Pete's sake, his father and Goku were even facing each other in the finals! Goten wasn't fighting, but had gotten himself and his "friend" prime seats for the entire event, as did Bra and her gang of girlfriends, and Kuririn and his family. Chi-Chi, Videl, Gohan, and baby Gosan also were in the stands, and Piccolo and Dende were there, and had even brought Mr. Popo! The one _Tenka'ichi Budokai_ in years when just about everyone was either competing or in the stands, and he was stuck doing paperwork. His president mother, Bulma, was here at the Capsule Corp Headquarters, too, and was watching the broadcast of the competition on the TV in her office. But Trunks just couldn't bring himself to do the same. If he even so much as saw the stadium, he'd go nuts. For now, all he could bring himself to do was stare lazily out the tenth-story window and daydream, all the while tapping on the desk...

_**THUMP!**_

_Oops_, Trunks thought. In his boredom, he'd accidentally let his reign on his strength slip for a second. Good thing it was only one finger, otherwise he might have broken the oak desk clean in half. _Gotta watch that. _He sighed, leaned back in his chair, and folded his arms behind his head. This was just too much. He'd been here all day; he had to go do something else. He didn't have to go to the Budokai, but he needed to at least escape the stuffy building for a while. Maybe go for a quick fly around the city. Or something. Ah, to hell with it, he was going straight to Papaya Island. But there was one problem.

Trunks' eyes shifted to the far corner of the ceiling. Within it lay a small, standard model security camera. Odds were that his mom had been keeping general tabs on him all day through the security system. Trunks closed his eyes and focused. Her _ki_ was still downstairs, and robust as ever, which meant she was probably **still** watching. If he was going to make an escape, he had to be crafty about it. Suddenly, he had an idea. _It should work_, he thought. But he was going to need a few minutes to set the plan into action. He started focusing again, keeping tabs on Bulma's _ki_...

After a few minutes, his window of opportunity was finally opened. He sensed his mother move away from the vicinity of her office at a quick pace, most likely to get some coffee, make a copy, or something of that sort. Now that he wasn't being watched for a few minutes, Trunks pushed himself out of his chair and began digging through his desk drawers. There was a certain little device he had stashed in here when he'd been moved to this office, just in case of a situation like this. A minute later he'd found it. Phase one, complete. He checked on his mom's _ki_, and she was still holding her position away from her office. Good. Time to initiate phase two.

A minute later, and phase two was complete. Bulma was on her way back, now, so Trunks had to complete phase three quickly. He walked over to the window, slid it open, and started to step out. He turned to take one more look at his little setup, and smiled. _I've still got it,_he thought. He then hopped the rest of the way out the window, and, hovering in place, turned and closed it back up. Free at last. He took a deep breath of fresh air, hovered backwards and up a few yards, then shot straight up into the open sky.

* * *

"Wow, Goten," Palice commented cheerfully, as she stirred her smoothie. "Your dad's really great!"

Goten nodded, and sipped at his milkshake, joining her gaze on the TV screen. They'd decided to take a quick break, and head out of the main stands for a few minutes to grab something to drink. Palice, his close friend of over a year, had never been to a Budokai before, much less ever been exposed to exceptional fights like those taking place this time around. Needless to say, she was awestruck.

Goten wasn't quite as impressed. He'd seen everyone fight at much higher levels than this, time and again. For the Budokai, those of his all-powerful friends and family who had entered had agreed to limit and equalize their strength, in order to make the fights a matter of skill and strategy, rather than power. After all, even someone like Pan, who was far stronger than any normal human being, still couldn't match up to the sheer amount of destructive power that folks like Vegeta and Goku had. Goten had been tempted to enter, but had ended up deciding to simply spend the day with Palice instead. Goten knew he was kind of out of practice anyway. The most training he ever really did anymore was the traditional spar with his dad every time Goten visited home. Besides, power limits aside, some of the fights had still ended up rather one-sided, like Vegeta's bout with Pan that morning. Goten chuckled at the memory of it. _Poor Pan_.

Palice noticed, and flashed a brilliant smile back at him. Goten always had thought she was very pretty. She had shoulder-length brunette hair, which she had done some sorta perm thing to, which only made it look better. She had a face that wasn't actress level nor a plain "girl-next-door" look, but a perfect amalgam of the two, and her body was the same way. All in all, she would be quite a catch for any lucky guy.

They had met last year at Satan City University, where they both still studied. They had both been in a mad rush, late for their classes, when they first ran into each other. Rather, they had **almost** ran into each other, rounding the same corner, but Goten's lightning-fast, demi-Saiyan reflexes allowed him to both see her and jump aside at the last split second. A wise action, since with his inborn superhuman strength, he probably would have plowed right though her. Unfortunately, the direction he jumped sent his head smack into the opposite wall of the hallway. Saiyan strength or no, he had knocked himself silly. Palice had dragged him to the nurse, and the two had stuck like glue since then.

It seemed, as she'd told him, that she was from a rich family, and had spent most of her childhood being very sheltered. She'd never even gone to a real school, having been taught by private tutors up until college, until by her own volition she struck out on her own and went to SCU like any other student.

Goten grinned back at her. "Just remembering my niece's match earlier."

Palice chuckled and shook her head. "Poor thing. But it **was** funny."

Goten glanced back at the TV, and noticed the timer for the match.

"We'd better head back," he said. They've only got eight minutes left."

"Okay," Palice responded, and the two started walking back. Just then, Goten noticed a certain someone through the crowd, on the other side of the snack bar hall. He turned to Palice.

"Hey, you wanna meet one of the other contestants?"

Palice's face lit up at the suggestion, and she clasped her hands in excitement.

"Oh, really? Which one? Where?"

"You'll see! C'mon, he's over there, let's catch up to him!"

With that, he took her hand, and began leading her through the throngs of people. Twisting and turning, he tracked the contestant's ki, steadily closing the gap until they finally broke into visual range. Goten attempted to wave him down, and yelled to get his attention.

"Hey, Boo!"

Hearing his name from a familiar voice, the jolly pink giant turned around, and a broad, open smile came to his pudgy, childlike face.

"Hi Goten!"

Both parties closed the remaining gap, and Goten and Boo exchanged an enthusiastic high-five. Shaking the numbness out of his hand, Goten noticed that Boo was carrying a full plastic bag.

"Whatcha got there?" He asked.

"Hmmm?" Boo realized what he was talking about. "Oh!" He opened up the bag, and pulled out its contents. "I got cake!"

Cake, indeed. Two large, chocolate-iced, whole cakes.

"I got two 'cuz I thought maybe Oob would want one! You want a bite?"

"Uh, no thanks, Boo," Goten politely declined. "I wouldn't want to take any of Oob's share or anything." Goten pointed towards the exit to change the subject. "You headed back to the arena? My dad and Vegeta's match is still going."

"Uh-huh," Boo replied, re-securing Oob's cake. Looking up, he noticed Palice. "Hi! Are you Goten's girlfriend?"

The two of them blushed profusely. "Ah, what?" Palice panicked. "Oh, uh, I could never claim to be... um..."

"_ANYWAY_," Goten interrupted, getting them back on track.

"... So you're Mr. Boo?" Palice gushed a bit. "Your matches earlier were really great."

Boo grinned, and struck a heroic pose, puffing out his chest and placing his fists on his hip. "Yup! Thanks!" He then proceeded to open up the container holding his cake.

"Which reminds, me, Boo..." Goten said. "Why'd you quit the match with my dad?"

"I got hungry!" Boo replied cheerfully, before taking a bite. "And I knew Goku and Vegeta wanted to fight, so I let Goku win."

Goten smiled. "How swell of you. Which reminds me, we should head back now before their fight's over."

The three proceeded out the exit, and began walking back in the direction of the arena.

"But that means, Boo," Goten commented, "that poor Mr. Satan is gonna have to face one of those two now, instead of you like usual."

"Mm-hmm," Boo grunted, before swallowing. "But Goku said he'd go easy on him, and prob'ly let him win."

"Go easy... on _Mr. Satan_?" Palice seemed confused.

"Yeah, you'd be surprised," Goten replied, then turned back to Boo. "But, what if _Vegeta _wins?"

His mouth full of cake, Boo simply shrugged.

* * *

_Dodge left. Right jab. Blocked. Right foot trip. Dodged. Spike ki, spinning backhand with left fist. Connected!_

_**THWACK!**_

"Oof!"

Music to Vegeta's ears. Now to follow up. He used the leftover momentum from the swing to bring both his arms around and go into a handstand, and spinning counter-clockwise, swung his left foot straight at Goku's head. But Goku managed to arc himself back just in time, cleanly avoiding the blow, and jumping back out of the way. Vegeta brought himself into a crouch, and launched himself straight at his opponent. He figured Goku would manage to dodge such a direct frontal attack, but Vegeta already had half a dozen reactions planned out to however Goku moved...

...Except that Goku _didn't_ move. He wasn't even looking at Vegeta. Oh, well. Vegeta wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

_**POW!**_

"Eeek!" Goku winced, knocked back slightly from the blow. He then held up a hand.

"What's wrong?" Vegeta inquired.

"Look," he said, pointing into the sky. "Where're they going?"

Vegeta followed his aim, and it seemed that Piccolo, Dende, and Popo had taken flight, and were heading away from the stadium.

"Humph. Who cares?" Vegeta said. "They're headed northeast, toward the Temple. Odds are they forgot something important."

"...Okay, then," Goku replied. "Heads up!"

Vegeta turned and ducked, dodging a spinning kick.

* * *

"...aaand... push!" Pilaf ordered for the hundredth time.

"_**Uuuuuur-oof!**_"

Thanks to Shu's map, the group had discovered a small, hidden chamber, in the dead center of the Temple. The map gave no label or hint to the room's purpose, nor any indication of an entrance. Only after exhaustively examining the circular section of wall which contained the room, did they find an apparent door, seemingly unopened for ages. It was nothing more than a large, door-shaped crack in the wall, nearly invisible from being shut and untouched for so many years. Mai and Shu, with Pilaf's encouragment, had been attempting to push the door open for almost ten minutes, but to no avail. Even dragging in Shu's mech for some extra strength had yeilded no result.

Mai finally collapsed on the floor, out of breath.

"Keep going! Push harder!" Pilaf demanded.

"We... can't...!" She gasped. " This thing isn't budging!"

"Push harder, then!"

"How do you know the Dragon Balls are even in there?"

"Because," Pilaf barked. " Why else would this room be hidden? That, and it's our last chance for success! Nothing else in this place has pointed to the Dragon Balls in the slightest."

"Except for that little model of Shenlong."

"Yeah, that was cool." Pilaf said. "I still want to keep it."

"You almost _broke _it, you idiot."

"Hey, look, I got it open."

Mai and Pilaf turned, bewildered, to Shu, who was standing there by the door, which was now swung _**outwards**_.

"...Looks like we had to pull, not push."

A few moments passed, filled with naught but awkward, flabbergasted silence.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Pilaf finally said. "Inward!"

The three cautiously entered the room. It was cylindrical and tiny, no more than a few yards in circumference. Every inch of the floor, wall, and ceiling was covered in a thick layer of dust, a tiny bit of which was kicked up as the three entered. That, combined with the musky, century-old air, brought on a sudden, violent sneeze from Shu. This kicked up more dust, and allowed a small pillar of light, streaming in from outside through a tiny portal in the ceiling, to break through into the chamber. It shone down to reveal a small, pedestal-like structure in the center of the room. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be some sort of cylindrical stone container with a rounded lid. Pilaf was giddy, shaking with exhilaration, as Mai and Shu opened the container, to reveal...

"...The Dragon Balls!" Pilaf practically wet himself in his excitement. But not quite. At his age, and in this situation, it was amazing that he didn't.

Indeed. Within the small container, cushioned by cloths doubtless centuries old, lay the complete set of seven.

"Wow," Mai said, dumbfounded. "They really were here."

"Wait a second," Shu said, picking one up. "They seem a bit different."

Mai picked one up herself. "They _are _a bit bigger than I remember them."

"That's right, but look closer," Shu remarked, pointing into the ball he held. "The stars are _black_."

Mai squinted. "You're right, they are." She tossed it lightly up and down to herself. "What's up with that?"

Pilaf jumped up onto Shu's head to gain access.

"Ooof!"

"Interesting," he said. "It seems that the location of the original Dragon Balls will remain a mystery." He picked up one of the balls, and held it high. "Yet we have managed to discover an entirely different set!"

"How about that," Mai said.

"Mmmph!" Shu responded.

"Quickly, now!" Pilaf demanded. "Bring them outside! We mustn't dawdle!"

A minute later, the three had carried the Dragon Balls out to the main, outer deck of the temple, and placed them together in a pile.

"These things are weird," Shu added. "The Dragon Balls are supposed to be warm and glow when they're together, right?" He picked one back up. "But these ones feel cold." He looked closely into the ball. "And they're glowing, but they've got some weird, swirly thing going on inside 'em too..."

"I don't care." Pilaf said.

"Maybe Shu's right," Mai suggested. "These things give me the creeps." She turned to Pilaf. "Don't you think there might be a reason they were sealed up like that?"

"I said I don't care!" Pilaf screeched. "Now put it back, so I can have my immortality!"

With a sigh, Shu replaced the ball, and he and Mai stepped away.

"Now, you two, get back in your mechs and be ready to go." Pilaf ordered. "Summoning the dragon is going to draw attention, so we need to be ready to leave quickly after my wish is made."

Shu and Mai complied, though both were still a bit unsettled. Once mounted, the two backed off a bit.

Pilaf, grinning broadly, turned to face the Dragon Balls, and raised up his arms in excitement.

"_DRAGON! COME FORTH AND GRANT MY WISH!"_

**DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED  
**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Four** - **"_Honey, I Shrank the Saiyan_"


	4. Honey, I Shrunk the Saiyan

_**Author's Note**: Like with Shenlong, "__Xuelong" is Chinese, and is pronounced "__Shzuay-Lung."_

**DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED  
**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Four** - **"_Honey, I Shrunk the Saiyan_"

"Ooh, he's not gonna be happy after that one."

Bulma eased herself down into her office chair, her eyes glued to the TV. She had returned from a trip to the restroom just in time to see her husband, Vegeta, receive a skillfully executed, worldwide-televised kick to the back of the head from Goku. Settling down, Bulma picked up he coffee off her desk and sighed, still watching the screen. These two were having an ever-loving ball facing each other like this. It was good to see, in fact. But they were having maybe **too** good a time, though. The fights in the Tenkaichi Budokai always had twenty-minute time limits, and the two were already a good fifteen minutes into their match...

Suddenly, Bulma's phone rang. Sighing, she wheeled herself over and picked it up.

"Hello?"

A panicked, young female voice came over the line.

"Whoa, whoa, what?" Bulma responded. "You broke what? Who? Atomizer? No, I don't think... wait, who are you calling for?"

The name given was one of Capsule Corps' top R&D leaders.

"Hold on, let me transfer you," Bulma said. She dialed the appropriate number, and was greeted by an elderly male voice.

"Hi, Dr. Norimaki?" She said. "Yes, hi, how are you? Listen, there's a call from home for you, it somehow ended up on my extension. Sure, I'll patch you through. No prob, you're welcome."

She connected the two, and then hung up the phone. That little ordeal done with, she turned back to the TV to see... Nothing? The screen was showing naught but static.

"Hmmm..." Bulma picked up the remote off her desk, and tried switching to a different channel, also showing the tournament. That was static too. She stood up, walked over, and checked the connections. Everything was connected perfectly fine. _That's weird_, she thought. She walked over to her desk, and pressed the intercom to her son's office.

"Hey, Trunks?"

No reply.

"Trunks?"

Nothing. She leaned over and switched her computer to the security monitor of Trunks' office. He was sitting there at his desk, his head laid down on folded arms on his desk, his back arching every few seconds as he breathed. He must have dozed off while working. Bulma spoke over the intercom again.

"Trunks!"

Still nothing. Bulma sighed. The intercom must be broken again. Some "_multi-billion zeni technology corporation_"; couldn't even get a reliable intercom system. She'd just have to go down to his office herself.

A minute later, she casually entered his office downstairs, and made a beeline for his TV.

"Trunks, honey, I need to use your TV. Mine's out."

Halfway there, she turned to and looked closer at Trunks, curious. She'd just addressed him fairly loudly from only a few feet away, yet he still hadn't budged. Even if he'd been asleep, he should have still woken up and mumbled, or something.

"Trunks?"

She walked over to him, moved to put her hand on his back...

...and her entire arm phased through him.

"Eeyah!" Bulma exclaimed, catching her balance after the unexpected extra movement. "What the hell!"

Catching her breath, Bulma looked again. Upon closer inspection, Trunks looked... weird. Like fuzzy, not-solid weird. A few seconds later, Bulma realized what was going on. _Of course,_ she thought. _What else?_

She looked straight upwards. Bingo, there it was. Trunks' portable hologram projector. Ever since he'd invented it at age twelve, he'd used it to pull the wool on her countless times. Looks like he had _really_ wanted to shirk his vice-presidential duties and sneak out to the Budokai today, and had left a looping holo-recording of himself in his place.

_Ah, well,_ Bulma thought, standing herself on Trunks' desk to reach the projector. _At least if he's not here, I get to use his TV_. She detached the little device from the ceiling, hopped down, then walked across the room to Trunks' TV, casually tossing the projector to herself. She switched the TV on, and, not surprisingly, was greeted by more static.

"Why am I not surprised?" Bulma remarked, before glancing at the previous paragraph. "Oh, yeah."

She sighed in exasperation. There was only one broadcasting company that held the TV rights to air the Budokai, and they were apparently having problems with all three of their channels. Maybe something was up at the broadcast tower in the east. Whatever, then. Goku and Vegeta's match was almost over, anyway. She'd just figure out who technically won later. Bulma turned the TV off, and started to leave the room. As she left, she switched off the light in the office. But she suddenly stopped, and turned around. Something was wrong. The room was nearly pitch black inside, with only the little bit of light from the hallway granting any visibility. But it was only around three in the afternoon...?  
She turned the light back on, and walked over to Trunks' window.

"What the hell?"

The entire sky outside was an eery, dark black. It was unnaturally overcast in addition to the blackness, and there were bolts of lightning visible in the upper layers of the cloud. She realized what was going on. After all, she'd seen it plenty of times before.

"Somebody's summoning Shenlong..." She said. "I wonder who?" Maybe there had been some disaster, and Dende had decided to gather the Dragon Balls in order to fix it. "Would explain why the satellite went out..." She mumbled to herself. Oh well. Despite it's appearance, it was fairly routine to be summoning Shenlong for some reason or another. There was nothing out of the ordinary going on.

At least, there wasn't, until the earthquake started.

* * *

They had been rivals for years. They had entered the competition for practically the sole purpose of ultimately facing off against each other. He understood that. He had even thrown a stalemating match with one of them to allow it to happen.

Yet, as he stood there on the arena sidelines, watching his sensei face off with his rival, Oob couldn't help but still feel a little jealous.

Part of it was that he had wanted to be matched with Vegeta at some point. When Oob had first met Goku and become his pupil, Vegeta had simply been "the friend of Master Goku with the scowl and pointy hair," which had remained his official title in Oob's head for quite some time. The two officially met for the first time a few years ago, at a birthday party for Vegeta's daughter, which Goku and Oob had been invited to. After the introductions, Vegeta had seemed quite eager to spar with Oob. The two did so right there in the back yard, to the distress and annoyance of Vegeta's wife, Bulma. Vegeta, however, seemed satisfied afterward, and with a hearty slap on the back and a proud cackle, had told Oob that he "lived up to his expectations, now go eat something." Oob had been left confused, but oddly contented, and had happily complied with the "eating" part. But since that day, Oob had hoped to show Vegeta at one point just how much he'd improved.

But the main cause for Oob's envy was the history Goku and Vegeta shared. In the time he had lived in Oob's village, Goku had spent many late, post-training nights recounting all kinds of stories about the exploits he and the rest of his comrades and friends had been through, often flamboyantly and goofily acting out key details, as Oob and his friends and family stared in awe and interest. There were many that were simply amusing, such as Goku and Piccolo learning to drive, but the best were all the magnificent stories of adventure. Goku told of epic battles with the likes of the Red Ribbon Army, King Piccolo, Garlic Jr, Tullece, Slug, Freeza and his family, Broly, the Androids and Cell, Bojack, Majin Boo, and Hildergarn. All were enthralling, and spurred Oob to train and improve in hopes that he might be able to help defend Earth the same way they had all done so many times in the past.

But two particular characters in those stories always stood out to Oob. Piccolo, and of course, Vegeta. Both had, at one point, been deadly threats to the Earth and its people; Piccolo labeled as a conquering demon king, and Vegeta a space-faring mercenary aiming to wipe the planet clean for profit. However, over time after their initial defeats, the two had grown to become close friends of Goku and company. Piccolo's sharpened shell had been broken by Gohan, Goku's son, whom he was still close friends with, leading to his shift from a dangerous global threat to a benevolent protector of Earth. Vegeta had been forced into an alliance with Goku, and a sense of comradery and kinship developed between them, as well as a fierce rivalry, which still persevered despite Vegeta's settling down and living on Earth. Between Goku and Vegeta in their current match, Oob was witnessing the culmination of such a relationship. It was this closeness and history that Oob envied.

_Aah, well,_ Oob thought, smiling. _I'll get there eventually._

"Oob!"

At the sound of his voice, Oob turned around to face its originator. It was the fat and friendly Mr. Boo. For some reason, Oob and Boo had hit it off pretty well after meeting a few years ago. The two just seemed to have such different yet similar personalities and likes, for some reason. And from the looks of it, Boo came bearing one of those likes right now.

"Hello, Mr. Boo!" Oob responded.

"Are they still fighting?"

"Yup. I think they're almost done." Oob gestured towards the bag. "What's that?"

"Oh!" Boo exclaimed, and removed an entire chocolate cake from the bag and handed it to Oob. "I got you cake!"

"Oh, thank you!" Oob replied enthusiastically. He and Boo both had an abnormal love for sweets, _FOR SOME REASON._

Unfortunately, Oob, while powerful, was only human, and didn't possess the superhuman stomach capacity and rubbery mouth necessary to inhale an entire cake in one bite, like Boo _(and often Oob's master)_ did. Sadly, he'd have to store most of this away for later.

"Hmm..." Oob said. "I can't eat it now, though. I should put it away somewhere..."

"There's a fridge in the back!"

"Oh, yes," Oob said, remembering how Goku had stuffed said refrigerator with large amounts of food that morning. Most of it had been gone by noon. "How could I forget?"

Oob started off towards the door to the participant waiting area, gazing down lustfully at his cake as he walked.

Suddenly, his cake disappeared right before his eyes!

Oh, wait, it was still there. The area and entire sky had just turned nearly pitch-black, and it had taken a second for Oob's eyes to adjust, that was all. Oob breathed a sigh of relief.

...Wait, _what_?

* * *

"Alright, Kakarrot, we're almost out of time. What do you say we finish thi- _OH F#&K, WHAT NOW?_"

Vegeta looked around, annoyed. The entire sky had just turned dark. While no less an interruption, what was going on was still immediately recognizable by the two.

"Someone's summoning Shenlong!" Goku exclaimed.

"No kidding," Vegeta replied dryly. "At least we know why Piccolo left."

Goku nodded. "Looks like they knew somehow that somebody's gathered the Dragon Balls."

Both warriors stood there, looking off in the general eastward direction they sensed the summoning happening. Vegeta thought for a moment, then ponderously folded his arms.

"Wait," he said. "_We_ may know what's happening, but..."

_"**LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, PLEASE DO NOT PANIC!**"_

Bingo. The tournament announcer continued speaking to the clearly advice-ignoring crowds. _"**PLEASE STAY IN YOUR SEATS AND REMAIN CALM! WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON, BUT I ASSURE YOU, THE PAPAYA ISLAND SECURITY FORCES ARE HERE TO ENSURE YOUR SAFETY AND **__**BLAH BLAH BLAH...**"_

Goku and Vegeta sighed. Looks like they'd have to wait.

"Well," Goku said, sitting down crossed-legged on the concrete tiles. "It'll only take a few moments for whoever gathered the balls to make their wish..."

"After which we'll finish the match," Vegeta added with a wry smirk as he sat, too, and stretched his arms. "In the meantime, I get a few minutes' break to decide just how to deliver the finishing blow."

Goku smiled. "Whatever ya say."

A minute or so passed as the announcer continued trying his best to soothe the audience. Goku and Vegeta's attention, however, remained focused on the direction they sensed the summoning happening.

"Hey, Vegeta."

"What?"

"Y' know, I've been around to see Shenlong be summoned probly a million times, but this time..."

He turned to Vegeta, a somewhat worried expression on his face.

"Doesn't something feel a bit... wrong?"

* * *

_Well, this is a mess,_ Videl thought.

She was still in her seat in the bleachers, her husband and daughter acting as buffers from the panicking crowds on either side of her to protect her, her mother-in-law Chi-Chi, and baby Gosan, mostly the latter. Gosan had been upset by the sudden change in scenery and mood, and was bawling profusely.

_Geez,_ she thought, as she bounced the baby up and down slightly on her shoulder while patting his back. _This has happened plenty of times before, right? You'd think people would get used to it._

She moved Gosan to her lap and continued bouncing him. "Ssshh," she consoled, but Gosan only continued crying. "Oh, shush, you. You want me to bop you one...?"

Her husband, Gohan, who was standing to her right, looked down at them.

"He okay?"

Videl nodded. "The dark and noise just spooked him, is all."

Videl paused, and took a closer look at Gohan. He had a look of concern about him, and she had a feeling it wasn't just for Gosan.

"Too bad Piccolo and his ears left," Chi-Chi, to Videl's left, remarked.

"Yeah," said Pan, pushing away a freaking-out pedestrian. "A good binkie would come in handy about now."

"Heh," Gohan replied. But his face, looking off into the distance, still showed worry.

"...Gohan?" Videl said. "Is something wrong?"

"...I don't know," he replied. "Something just doesn't feel right."

"Huh?" All three females responded in unison.

"What do you mean?" Chi-Chi asked.

"Pan," Gohan said, turning to look at his daughter. "You've seen and sensed Shenlong before, right?"

"Uh, yeah," Pan said, a bit confused. "Once, when we wished away the damage from that tidal wave..."

"But I've been around to see him summoned dozens of times, and," Gohan continued. "This doesn't feel like when Shenlong appears. It feels different."

_Different?_ Now Videl was starting to share his worry. If a massive, wish-granting dragon god started acting differently, it probably wasn't a good thing .

"Huh?" Pan looked confused, then followed her father's gaze, apparently focusing. "It does feel... weird."

Chi-Chi spoke up. "It looks like Goku and Vegeta's match is gonna be delayed."

"Maybe you should go with Piccolo," Videl suggested. "See if you can help."

Gohan nodded.

"That may be a good idea," he said. He started to hover above the seats, in preparation for takeoff. "Alright, then, I'll go catch up with them, and see what I can do..." He stopped, and looked at Videl and Gosan puzzlingly. "Hon, aren't you bouncing him a bit roughly?"

"Huh?" Videl responded. "You're the one 'bouncing roughly.' And you taught _me_ how to fly?"

"...Uh..."

Wrong. The entire stadium, nay, the whole island, had just started "bouncing."

"It's an earthquake!" Chi-Chi exclaimed.

"What the f#&k?" Pan yelled.

"Pan!" Videl and Gohan scolded.

"Bwaaah," Gosan added.

"Eyaaaaaaaaaah," suggested the entire crowd.

"Hold on to something, mom!" Gohan shouted. "Pan, come with me!"

"O-okay!"

"Papaya Island isn't near any tectonic plate borders," Gohan stated as the two took flight. "This earthquake isn't something that normally happens here."

"You mean..."

"Right," Gohan said. "This stadium isn't designed at all to take them! We need to make sure it doesn't collapse!"

* * *

"Collapse?"

Vegeta nodded. "It's obvious this stadium's not designed to withstand earthquakes, Kakarrot. Gohan and his brat have already started taking action. Maybe we should, too."

"Okay, then!" Goku affirmed. "Let's go!"

-**_Son!-_**

"Huh?"

"I didn't say anything."

"No, not you, Vegeta. Someone's talkin' in my head..."

* * *

-**_Is that you, Piccolo?-_**

_Yes, it's me!_

Even as he flew at top speed, Piccolo telepathically talked to Goku.

_Listen,_ he 'said.' _This is an emergency!_

_-**Well, yeah,-** _Goku responded. -**_Someone's summoned Shenlong, and now there's kinda a weird earthquake going on! Where'd you go all of a sudden?-_**

_Son, listen to me! You need to teleport ahead of me to the Temple! That's where the summoning is happening!_

_-**Wha-? The Temple? How? Teleport? Why?-**_

_I'll explain later! For now, you absolutely must prevent the wish from being made!_

_-**Is something wrong with Shenlong?-**_

* * *

"...It's not Shenlong?"

"Not Shenlong?" Vegeta inquired. "What are you and Piccolo talking about, Kakarrot? What's going on?"

"...Aah!" Goku exclaimed apologetically. "Okay, okay, Piccolo! Stop yelling at me! I'm going!"

This wasn't good.

"Going?" Vegeta said. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I need to go to the Temple," Goku replied, placing two fingers to his forehead. "Piccolo says it's an emergency..."

"Whatever, then," Vegeta said.

Goku concentrated for a moment. "There's the signal of the weird dragon..." He said. "...and three other small _ki_ that feel familiar..."

A second later, he zipped out of sight.

Vegeta stood there for a moment, looking at the pandemonium around him.

"Well, no point in standing still."

He took off.

* * *

"Oh geez oh geez oh geez oh geez oh geez..."

This was NOT how Goten had envisioned his day ending up.

He and Palice had started making their way down the hallway back out into the open seating. Palice had only commented a few seconds ago that the crowd sounded louder for some reason when this freak earthquake had hit. Now Goten was desperately trying to shield Palice from the rampaging crowd that had filled the hallway.

"Aah!" Palice yelped, desperately trying to keep her balance despite the quake and crowd. "Goten," she cried. "Why are we trying to go back in? We should leave!"

"We need to find my family," Goten said. Palice would be safe with Videl while he, Gohan and Pan did some crowd control. "They can help...Oof!"

A heavyset man, moving quickly for probably the first time in years, bumped violently into Goten, almost knocking him over. Goten managed to reach out, grasp Palice by the hand, and pull her out of the man's way. In the process, he got some woman's elbow to his face.

"Ow..." He said, rubbing his nose. Alright, that was it. They obviously weren't going to get anywhere on foot. He faced Palice, and seized her bodily by the waist.

Palice blushed slightly. "G-Goten? What are you..."

"Hold on tight."

"Huh?"

Goten took flight up into the space between the crowds and the high stone ceiling.

"Kyaaah!" Palice shrieked, deciding to comply with the "hold on" thing.

He jetted above the crowds in a beeline for the exit, his back facing the ceiling to shield Palice from any falling debris. A few seconds later, they were both back outside, in the open-air arena seating area. With Palice holding him in a death-grip and her face buried in his shoulder out of fright, Goten starting searching for his family. He had only looked for a few seconds, before...

**_CRRRRAAAAAAACK!_**

Goten looked in the direction of the sound. The concrete pillars supporting a high-up section of bleachers were starting to collapse from the stress of the quake. There were still a few people both on and below the section; all of them would die if it fell.

Goten swiftly flew towards it, and placed Palice on the level below it, out of the range of the falling section.

"Stay there!" He said, as he took off.

"Wait!" Palice yelled as he flew away. "Don't leave me here!"

Goten propelled himself toward the section as quickly as he could. When he was just a few yards away, it started to collapse. In a fraction of a second, Goten positioned himself and firmly planted his hands on the underside surface.

"Uurgh!" Goten adjusted his strength to hold the section, which was essentially nothing more than a large concrete slab. He had reached it just in time, too, since the pillar then began to buckle and fall over...

...straight towards Palice.

"No!"

* * *

He was too young to die, and he hoped this dragon agreed.

Shu had suspected from the start that there was something fishy about these new DragonBalls, and that they shouldn't use them. But Pilaf had insisted on getting his immortality, stubborn as always.

When Pilaf had first called the dragon, there had been nothing but silence...

_"...Dragon?"_

_The tiny tyrant crept a few inches closer to the DragonBalls, inspecting them. He reached down and poked one of them. It rolled an inch or two._

_Mai and Shu, having not quite reached their mechas yet, also turned and gazed at the balls, confused at the lack of any activity._

_"...Nothing's happening," Shu said._

_"Oh, thanks for the heads-up," Pilaf replied sarcastically. He picked one up. "Perhaps there's some sort of special code word?"_

_"Maybe they're broken or something," Mai suggested._

_"Would explain why they were stuck in the back closet," Shu joked._

_"Would you two shut up?" Pilaf yelled. "I'm trying to thi-YEOW!"_

_He suddenly dropped the DragonBall, and shook his hand around in pain._

_"What happened?"_

_"It got hot," Pilaf exclaimed. "All of a sudden it got hot!"_

_"White-hot?"_

_"...Not THAT hot..."_

_"Well, it is now."_

_All seven DragonBalls had started glowing. Not gently pulsing like the normal set, but violently flashing. Waves of heat radiated from them, and Pilaf and company shielded their eyes. _

_"M-maybe I should back off a bit..."_

_Pilaf stepped back a few yards, and just in time. A large, bright red aura of light suddenly burst out around the DragonBalls, swirling and putting out heat like a typhoon of flame._

_"This isn't normal..." Mai lamented._

_"...We should duck and cover or some-"_

_Shu was abruptly cut off when, with a flash, a pillar of light shot up from the DragonBalls. The entire sky turned black and overcast, and lightning began to flash above._

_"Waaaah!" Pilaf, Mai, and Shu simultaneously darted away. Mai and Shu each hid behind a tree, and Pilaf found himself backed up against a pillar._

_The beam disappeared, and was replaced by the red aura, which began to lengthen and swirl violently. It swept upwards, and began weaving in and out of the clouds around the palace. Then starting with the base at the DragonBalls, it began to solidify. Before the company's very eyes, the red cloud of light took form and became scale-covered flesh. It arced and turned through the clouds, expanding and lengthening itself, until it finally took a solid form. _

_It then let loose a thunderous roar that shook the planet._

...Five minutes later, Shu finally had the courage to open his eyes and peek out from behind the tree. He nearly wet himself at what he saw.

Surrounding them and Kami's palace was a long, winding tail, ten times as thick as the palace was wide. It arced and floated through the surrounding dark sky for miles and miles, the dragon seemingly grasping the horizon and world itself in a winding death hold as nature cast lightning at it in protest. The DragonBalls were pulsing in rhythm, and still glowed with the same ethereal fiery aura. The very tip of the dragon's tail situated within the aura flickered in and out of solidity, as if halfway between this world and some other.

At the other end, close up to the palace and staring at the trio, was the Dragon's head. In basic form, it resembled the Shenlong they had witnessed decades ago. But aside from being red and a hundred times more massive, this dragon was far more sinister in appearance than Shenlong. It's fangs wer massive, and it's snout and horns were sharpened, making it resemble some monster of the underworld. It's eyes glowed a bright gold.

Not just it's appearance, but the very feeling of this dragon was insidious. Shenlong emanated an air of power and regality to those who witnessed him, like the awe one woud feel when entering the grand hall of an emperor. This dragon, however, made the atmosphere thick with a cold, terrible feeling that filled one with dread and horror. When it spoke, it's thunderous, booming voice resonated with a high-pitched overtone that sounded like the tortured cries of a thousand damned souls.

"**YOU WHO HAVE SUMMONED ME...**" it spoke, it's voice causing the structure to rumble. "**STATE YOUR WISH.**"

Shu saw Pilaf slowly but steadily move forward.

"W-w-what are you?" He said nervously. "You... you're not Shenlong!"

"**I AM XUELONG. I POSSESS FAR MORE POWER THAN SHENLONG**," it responded. "**I AM CAPABLE OF GRANTING YOU ANYTHING YOUR SOUL DESIRES**."

"M-more powerful?" Pilaf was steadily regaining his composure. "Excellent..."

"**SO SPEAK YOUR WISH, AND I SHALL GRANT IT**."

"O-of course!" Pilaf said immediately. "I wish for..."

"W-wait!" Shu spoke up just in time.

Pilaf turned to face him, greatly annoyed.

"What?"

Shu was trembling as he spoke. "Th-this isn't a g-good idea..." He looked at Xuelong. "I just know something bad is going to happen..."

Mai, also now peeking out of her hiding place, sided with Shu. "He's right," she said. "This feels bad. Really bad..."

"You idiots!" Pilaf rebuked them. "This is what I've been waiting for! I'm not going to-"

"**THEY ARE WISE IN THEIR FEAR**."

"Huh?" Pilaf said, turning back around to Xuelong. "What do you mean?"

"**IT IS TRUE THAT MY ABILITY TO FULFILL YOUR DESIRES IS NEARLY INFINITE**," he boomed. "**BUT BE FOREWARNED, USE OF MY POWER COMES AT A GREAT COST**."

"Cost?" Pilaf inquired. "What do you-"

"Whoa!"

Pilaf, Mai, and Shu all whipped around to see where the voice had come from. There was a newcomer standing a few yards away, gazing at Xuelong. He looked about in his forties, but very well-built for his age. He wore a white shirt with a dark blue gi top, held in place by a white cloth belt tied around his waist, and tan pants with black martial arts boots. He looked extremely familiar, but for the life of him, Shu couldn't quite put his finger on who it was...

..until he noticed the shape of his hair. That was unmistakable.

"Oh, no..." he said. "It's..."

* * *

"..Son Goku!"

Pilaf double-taked between Shu and the newcomer. Son Goku? The same Son Goku that had repeatedly stood in his way so many times all those years ago?

_This is bad_, he though.. _This was very bad_.

"Hey," Goku said, as he raised his arm to point towards Xuelong.

Pilaf began to panic. His mind flashed back to his very first confrontation with Son Goku and his friends over the DragonBalls. He'd have gotten his wish, too, if it hadn't been for those meddling kids and that pig. Pilaf had used every last ounce of his knowledge, charisma and cunning to procure the DragonBalls, stealing the last few from them. But at the last moment, that cursed pig had escaped their imprisonment, and jumped in and undermined Pilaf's imminent wish for immortality by making some small, filthy wish of his own. Now, Pilaf was sure Son Goku was about to stop him in the same way. There was no doubt in Pilaf's mind that Son Goku was addressing Xuelong in order to steal his wish.

Goku finished his sentence.

"...You're not Shenlong!"

Pilaf facefaulted. Goku glanced over.

"You alright?" He inquired. But then he looked a little closer at Pilaf for a moment. He then looked over to Shu and Mai, as well. "Hey," he commented. "I know you guys!"

"Ah, no, no," Pilaf bluffed, righting himself. "I don't believe we've ever met. You must be mistaking me for someone else. Perhaps you've met my identical cousin..."

"No, it's you three, alright." Goku pointed at them one by one. "You're Emperor Pilaf! You're Mai, and you're... Boot?"

Shu flushed. "No, Shu! My name's Shu!"

"Oh," Goku said. "I was close. That's still a weird name, though... can I call you Soba?"

"No! What is that, some sort of noodle? That's worse!"

"Anyway," Goku said. "This dragon guy sure may not be Shenlong, but I've got a feeling you were still about to make a wish to 'im." He folded his arms and smiled determinedly. "You should know by now I won't letcha do that."

"Like hell you won't!" Pilaf barked. He turned to his minions and waved towards Goku. "Shu! Mai! Annihilate him!"

The two didn't respond favorably.

"Are you kidding?" Shu asked sarcastically.

"Don't you think," Mai started, "that we should just cut our losses and..."

"KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM KILL HIM!"

Mai sighed. "Fine..." she said, defeated. "Ready, Shu?"

"I guess."

Mai grabbed her sidearm, and popped a special shell from her belt into it. She took aim at Goku, and fired.

* * *

_She's using a gun? _Goku thought_. I thought they'd know guns won't hurt me. Oh, well. Might as well show off a bit, then._

Goku spiked his ki a bit as she fired, and let the shell hit him. However, he wasn't expecting the projectile to explode when it it. It still didn't hurt, but it did release a thick cloud all around him.

_A smokescreen?_ Goku smiled. They hadn't lost their touch. Knowing them, they were probably just using this as a cover while they got to...

Goku jumped backwards, flipping his way out of the cloud of smoke. The two were gone from their spots by Mr. Popo's trees. Goku looked over to his right, and, sure enough, there the two were, seated in their mechas, ready for battle.

Shu lept at Goku, a mechanical fist arched up for a smashing blow. Goku dodged to the right, but without missing a beat, Shu aimed and fired a few quick rounds from the machine gun on his mecha's left forearm, which Goku reacted in time to dodge. That was a good deal stronger than a handgun, and probably would have hurt him a bit unless he powered up more. Shu didn't waste his momentum, and swung his right arm around for a punch, which Goku blocked with his arm. But then Shu whipped around and grabbed said arm with his left. Before Goku could escape, Shu quickly heaved him into the nearby pillar, barely missing Pilaf.

"Oof!" Goku exclaimed as he smashed through, hearing Pilaf angrily scold his underlings. Goku recovered, and quickly jumped up and grabbed the still-intact upper portion of the pillar as it fell. He placed it down gently on the stone deck, figuring Dende would make him and Piccolo fix it later.

He looked back over at his opponent. Shu had switched out with Mai, who was now aiming her mecha's three missile cannons at Goku, no doubt already locked on target. Goku smiled. These guys were giving him another opportunity to strut his stuff. She fired, and three missiles simultaneously rocketed towards him.

Goku extended the index and middle fingers of both his right and left hands. He placed his left to his forehead, and with his right, reached out to the fastest of the three missiles, now within arm's reach.

The missile vanished into thin air when he made contact. The other two swiftly met the same fate.

Goku continued beaming. Practical test number one, a success. It was amazing what one could learn to do with Instant Movement after training with it for some thirty years.

* * *

Seventeen casually whistled to himself as he worked. The other people in the small northern village he'd settled down in had been freaking out since the sky had turned dark, but Seventeen, knowing that it was just Shenlong being summoned, had dismissed it and gone about his business as usual. He couldn't shirk his fields, no matter how relatively small they were. He had even opted to record the Budokai today rather than watch it live, and wasn't going to let something like a Shenlong summoning make his personal sacrifice moot. The relative darkness was kind of nice, even. It even added a bit to the general quiet, peaceful nature of his farm...

_**WoOoOoOosh... BOOM BOOM BOOM!**_

Seventeen jumped a bit at the completely unexpected sound of three quick, repeated explosions. He turned to see a far corner of his field currently burning.

"...What the hell?"

* * *

_No, no, no, no, no..._

Pilaf was sweating buckets now. Was his stressed mind playing tricks on him, or had Son Goku really just done that? It would have been disheartening enough for him to dodge the missiles or block them or even withstand their explosions, but to somehow make them disappear altogether? Was the great Pilaf truly this far outclassed? He fell to his knees, and repeatedly pounded the floor in rage.

"No!" He yelled, and pointed at Goku accusingly. "It's not fair! Fifty years ago, we could have easily taken you, but now..."

He stood up and screamed defiantly at Son Goku at the top of his lungs.

"CURSE YOU! I WISH YOU WERE A CHILD AGAIN!"

There was a second's pause, before Pilaf's stomach further twisted as he realized what he'd just said, and what the repercussions of his poor wording would be.

"**SO BE IT.**"

Pilaf whipped around to Xuelong, his eyes bulged with shock and terror.

"No!" He protested "Don't! I didn't..."

But is was too late. Xuelong's eyes began to shine brightly, and the ground beneath them all began to shake once more. Xuelong's massive face slowly turned to Son Goku.

"What? Huh? Hey? HUH?" Goku stammered, confused.

Suddenly, he was enveloped in a sphere of pulsing energy. His eyes glazed over, and his body went limp. The sphere's pulses then multiplied in intensity, enveloping him in light, and tearing up the stone immediately beneath and around it. It kicked up a cloud of dust, forcing Pilaf to shield his eyes. Suddenly, there was one final flash of light, and the sphere disappeared. A few seconds later, the cloud began to settle, and Pilaf was catatonic at what he saw.

There before him stood Son Goku, but drastically transformed. Every aspect of him, face, muscles, and even the size of his clothes, had been reverted to nearly a carbon copy of the young Son Goku from the past. The one who had gotten in Pilaf's way so many times all those years ago. He was glancing around, bewildered.

"Hey," Goku spoke up, his voice now squeaky and youthful. "What happened? When did everything get bigger?"


	5. Aftermath

_******DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED**_

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Five -_"Aftermath"_

He wasn't going to make it, he wasn't going to make it, he wasn't going to make it...

Piccolo was exerting nearly all his _ki_ to fly fast enough to get to the palace, and he'd been forced to leave Dende and Popo behind in his haste. He just hoped that Son had managed to get things under control. However these... things had been uncovered and used was unimportant at this point. Now, all that mattered was that they prevent a wish from being made.

A wish on the Black Star Dragon Balls.

They'd always been an enigma, an awful secret that he had never fully understood. One part of him was protective and wary of them. Another was envious of and awestruck by the power they surely held. But yet another was familiar with and terrified of them, and it was this side of him that drove Piccolo to act.

As he flew, Piccolo directed his attention downward. The mysterious planet-wide quake had undoubtedly been an effect of the summoning, and had now stopped. He could see scattered fires burning, and could hear and sense the distress in the towns below. The larger cities were undoubtedly even worse.

Suddenly, Piccolo's view of the surface below became clearer. The sun was back out. He looked upward, and saw the darkness in the sky rapidly receding, all collapsing towards the direction he was heading, like water through a funnel.

Piccolo began to panic further. The summoning was over! But had Goku managed to dismiss the dragon, or had a wish been made? Either way, he had to get to the palace before the balls scattered, or it could be catastrophic.

"Hyaargh!"

With a yell, Piccolo kicked in the afterburners, so to speak, brining out his maximum power and channeling it into his flight. The palace was only a few miles ahead of him now; at this speed, he would be there in a matter of seconds.

He could see the light show the Black Star DragonBalls were putting on as they withdrew the energy they had been emanating. Then a bright red mass shot upwards, and split into seven parts. The balls were scattering! Luckily, one of them seemed to be headed in Piccolo's direction.

Suddenly, the balls' paths arced upwards.

"What the..." Piccolo exclaimed, as he reacted by shooting himself upwards as well. His targeted ball was beginning to accelerate; Piccolo strained himself to reach it...

There! He barely managed to halt the ball, barely catching it in time before it shot out to who-knows-where.

"Gyaaah!" Piccolo exclaimed. The Dragon Ball was burning hot with the remaining energy it been propelled with. But Piccolo had no choice but to grip it tightly and allow it to scorch the skin of his hand, until its momentum finally ran out, and it cooled down.

Piccolo breathed a sigh of relative relief, then looked towards the palace in the distance. Save for a missing pillar, It appeared undamaged. Perhaps Son had managed to chase off the hopeful wishers after all?

He flew over towards the palace, carrying the Dragon Ball. There was a cloud of dust obscuring his vision, likely ground zero where the Dragon Balls had been used. He landed on the stone deck, and began walking towards the scene of the crime. As he did, three figures came into view, two of them seated in rather wrecked-looking mechas.

"W-well," he heard one of them say. "THIS is gonna make a good story for the grandkids..."

"Screw that," Another replied. "I'm writing a book."

"AAAARGH!" The third, smallest, and un-mechad of the three screamed. "You morons! If you hadn't been so useless, I'd have gotten my wish!"

Piccolo sighed. That was a relief. The wish had been prevented. Plus, now that he was closer, he had matched the familiar faces of the intruders with their voices. He smirked. Time to have some fun.

"Hello," he said.

The small creature turned, surprised. His eyes went wide.

"Kk-k-kkkk-kkkk-kkkk..."

"What are you so frustrated about?" Piccolo inquired sarcastically. He knew just how he'd be recognized.

"...k-k-King Piccolo!" the short, blue one exclaimed, positively terrified. Yup. Definitely remembered him.

"That's right, 'Emperor' Pilaf," Piccolo responded.

"B-but... you were..."

"Killed?" Piccolo smiled, then cackled sinisterly, scaring Pilaf further. Goodness, this was fun. "No," he said with a smirk. "As you can see, I'm very much alive and well."

He put one hand on his waist, and tossed the Dragon Ball to himself with another.

"...and it seems you've been breaking into my home and playing with my toys..."

"I-I-I-I , um, ah..." Pilaf was breaking out into a cold sweat now, and his minions behind him were embracing each other in terror.

Piccolo caught the Dragon Ball, and phased out, appearing behind them, placing them between him and the edge of the palace deck. He extended one arm towards the group.

"...and you know what happens to people who do that?"

"Kyaaaah!" Pilaf shrieked like a schoolgirl.

"No! Please!" The human female frantically begged. "I'm too young and beautiful to die!"

"I've never even kissed a girl!" The dog-person lamented.

The other two turned to him, surprised. "Really?" His only response was to burst into tears.

"Ahem," Piccolo coughed, reclaiming their attention. They shivered in fear, their eyes clenched shut as Piccolo's outstretched hand began to glow...

...and with a sparkle of ki, three of some sort of strange satchels materialized, each fastened to one of their backs.

Confused, the three inspected the items.

"Huh?"

"What are these?" The woman inquired.

"Parachutes," Piccolo responded.

"Parachutes?" Pilaf pondered. "Why would you... give us... parachutes..."

Piccolo grinned.

The three sweat-dropped.

"Bye."

His arm still forward, Piccolo propelled a burst of ki at the trio, just strong enough to push them off the edge.

"EYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaa..."

The three's shreiks of fright faded out as they plummeted. Piccolo turned around, still smirking. _Let's hope for their own sakes they're smart enough to pull the ripcords..._ He thought.

He looked around at the rest of the palace. Now to find Son and assess the damage. Whatever needed to be fixed, at least no wish had been made...

* * *

Goten could only watch, helpless, as the massive stone pillar fell towards his girlfriend. He couldn't let go of the slab, or else the about half-dozen people on it would fall to their deaths. He could use one hand to shoot the pillar, but any ki blast powerful enough to destroy it would also definitely kill Palace, either directly or from the burst of burning debris.

Her gaze had been fixed on Goten and his sudden show of strength. She only noticed and looked up at the pillar once it was mere yards from her, a split second before it...

...stopped.

"Trunks!"

Goten's best friend had, at the last second, swooped in from above, and caught the pillar on his back.

"Hey, Goten," he said. He looked down at Palace. "You okay?"

She nodded meekly, her eyes still wide with amazement.

"Good," Trunks replied. "Oof!" he grunted, as he let the pillar roll off his back and set itself safely on the ground. He then looked up at Goten.

"Got your hands full, there?"

"Yeah, just a little," Goten replied dryly, grunting a bit. "Could you make sure there's nobody on this thing anymore?"

Trunks took into the air, and peered onto the top of the concrete.

"Nope, all clear."

"Good."

"Toss that thing."

With that, Goten grunted, and a small ki aura burst into view as he powered up slightly.

"Hyaaa!" With a yell, Goten heaved the entire slab over his back. It arched through the air for at least a mile or two, before splashing down a few hundred yards off the Papaya Island beach.

"Not bad," Trunks said, squinting to check out the distance. "You almost hit a boat, though."

"Really?" Goten replied, concerned.

"They're fine," Trunks assured, waving casually. "Just a bit soggy now."

The two of them floated down and landed next to Palace. Goten knelt down to inspect her.

"Are you hurt?"

She shook her head. "I-I'm fine..." She looked up at him. "But, Goten, what was that? How did you...?"

"E-hehehe..." Goten laughed nervously. "Uh... natural talent?"

She continued staring, dumbfounded.

"Hey," Trunks said suddenly.

"What?"

He waved coolly at the scene around them. "The earthquake's stopped."

Goten stood and looked around. Indeed, it had.

"Well," he remarked. "That was weird."

"Let's go meet up with the others," Trunks suggested. He pointed to a distant section of seating. "Videl and your mom are over that way."

"Okay," Goten said, then reached down and grasped Palace's hand, helping her up. "Can you walk?"

"Uh," Palace stuttered. "Actually... could you fly me over?"

"Huh?" Goten replied. "Why? What's wrong? Did you hurt your leg? Are you..."

"No..." she responded meekly. "But... it was fun..."

"..."

"..."

Goten flashed the wide, goofy signature 'Son family grin.'

"...Okay."

He picked her up, and she clasped her arms around his neck. They smiled at each other for a moment, before Goten abruptly took flight.

"Wheee!"

Trunks stood there watching them for a minute, before shaking his head in exasperation.

"Geez..."

He took off after them.

* * *

"Waaaaah! It's too heavy! I can't move!"

"It's okay, just hold still!"

He tried to console the trapped child, to little avail. It made sense; most 10-year-olds wouldn't exactly be very calm when pinned under a thick length of steel frame. Nor would most have much hope of making it out.

Then again, most didn't have the illustrious Mr. Satan, world champion, as their rescuer.

"Humph," he said, positioning himself against the pillar, grasping it above and beneath. A crowd had gathered behind him, and they began cheering.

"He's gonna lift it!"

"Go for it! You 'da man!"

"Wh00t!"

Despite the seriousness of the situation, he couldn't help but smile a bit. All these years, and they're still cheering for a old croon like me?

He took a deep breath, and allowed his body to relax itself, while he focused his strength. Then with a grunt, he heaved the beam up and away to the side. The little girl was free now. Aside from a few bruises, she looked okay. The crowd's cheers picked up again.

"Yeaaaah, Mr. Satan!"

"You rock!"

"I want to have your babies!"

"Oh, Mr. Satan!" The little girl exclaimed, trying to get up. "Thank y-oowww!" A somewhat badly bruised leg wasn't going to let her go anywhere on her own.

"You're most welcome, little miss," Satan said, smiling. "Here, I'll carry yah over to the paramedics."

She nodded in joyous agreement, and reached up her arms. Satan began to bend down to pick her up. However, his recently overworked spine had other plans.

_**Crick!**_

"Yow!"

The crowd silenced. Satan stood there hunched for a minute, barely able to move.

"Mr. Satan? Are you okay?"

"YUP. PERFECTLY FINE..."

_I'm definitely getting too old fer this..._

"Um, Mr. Satan, would you like some help?"

Though he couldn't move, he saw the little girl peek over behind him. Her face lit up as she recognized the new arrival.

"Oh! It's you! Mr. Oob!"

Satan managed to turn his head around to face him. Indeed it was Goku's young pupil. He had apparently been zipping around helping with damage control and evacuation, as he was somewhat dusty, and his _gi_ was a bit tattered.

"AH, OOB, MAH BOY."

"You don't sound too good..."

"I JUST STRAINED MAH BACK A LITTLE." He pointed at the girl. "WOULDJA DO ME A FAVOR AND CARRY HER OVER TO THE PARAMEDICS?"

Oob nodded. "Sure."

He walked over to the little girl, picked her up in his arms, and began walking. He looked down and noticed the girl was blushing, giddy with excitement over meeting a competitor.

"Your match was great!" She said.

Oob smiled politely. "Thank you."

"Can I have your autograph?"

"Uh...sure."

"...You're cute!"

"...Why don't we just worry about your leg..."

Mr. Satan smiled. That Oob was a good kid. Made sense, with who he had for a sensei. Goku sure knew how to pick 'em. In fact, Satan had planned to announce his retirement at this Budokai. He was long due to do so, and if he had to have anyone succeed him as champion, he'd want it to be Goku or one of his group, rather than the large groups of posers which had been his competition in the last several Budokai.

_Then again, trouble always seems to follow those guys to tournaments._ He looked around at the stadium. Case in point. Despite that this area never had earthquakes, the place had held up rather well. The place had been wrecked or altogether ruined several times over the last couple decades; it'd have been a shame to have it destroyed again. But even he knew that this time wasn't a natural occurrence. Something extraordinary was up. He'd have to ask Goku and company later...

...That is, once he could walk again.

He motioned to two men in the crowd, pointed to his back, and they hurried over. They positioned themselves behind him, and each grabbed one of his arms with one arm while placing the other on his lower back.

"Ready?" One asked.

"YUP."

_**CRA-A-ACK!**_

"Aaaaaah!"

* * *

Stupid column. Stupid earthquake. Stupid _Vegeta_

.

"You have it?"

"I got it!"

"You mean, '_I have it_'..."

"(_Oh, for Pete's sake..._)" Pan remarked to herself.

"I have it, Dad!" She yelled down. "It's not going anywhere! Go ahead!"

"Okay." Down below, Gohan casually picked up the chunk of steel frame he'd found, and began walking over. Pan was holding in place the top half of a concrete pillar underneath the bleachers that had literally cracked in half from the stress of the earthquake. Gohan grunted, and a ki aura flowed into view around him.

He then wrapped the steel around the column.

Like freaking paper.

Pan was just a bit impressed. _Wow_, she thought. _With Grandpa's training, I'm not exactly weak or nothin', but Dad... Wow._

Gohan floated around the column, inspecting his patchwork.

"Looks good," he said. "Okay, Pan, let it go slowly."

Pan nodded, and steadily released her hold on the concrete. With a slight cracking sound or two, it settled into place. The steel more than held up.

"Alright, then," Gohan said, dusting off his hands. "There's one calamity averted."

"Guess we gotta go deal with the next one, then," Pan said.

Gohan looked up at her, curious. "What would that be?"

"Grandma."

* * *

"Son! Are you here?"

Piccolo began to walk across the deck of the palace, surveying the damage. Aside from the broken pillar, and a bit of the stone tile torn up in a few places, it seemed Goku had kept the confrontation contained. Not only that, but based on Pilaf's attitude and tantrum, he had apparently prevented the wish from being made, as well. That was the important thing. The dragon being summoned had caused enough damage. If a wish had been made, it would have been bad news for the entire planet.

"Piccolo!"

He turned around to face Dende and Popo, who had just landed. He smirked playfully.

"It's about time."

"P-piccolo..." Dende was bent over, gasping after the full-speed flight. "What's going on? ...Why... did we have to..."

"It's alright now," Piccolo replied. Dende noticed the Dragon Ball in Piccolo's hand.

"Is... is that a Dragon Ball?" He asked. "Why does it look different? Why can't I feel a link with it?"

"I'll explain later," Piccolo said. "For right now, let's try to find Goku." He looked towards the entrance. "He must be inside somewhere."

The three of them walked in, Dende groaning as he saw the broken column. Once inside, Piccolo called again.

"Son!"

The response was certainly unexpected.

"Hey, Piccolo! I'm in here!"

It was a child's voice. A nasly, high-pitched, and _familiar_ child's voice.

"Huh?" Dende remarked. "Who is that?"

"Oh, no..." Popo said. "I'd know that voice anywhere..."

Piccolo felt his stomach twist into a knot as he rushed towards the direction the response came from. He burst into the bathroom...

...where a child-sized Goku was standing on a chair, inspecting himself in the mirror.

* * *

Goku turned to see Piccolo bursting into the bathroom. Well, that's just great. What if he'd been on the toilet?

"Hey, Piccolo," Goku said casually. "Ever heard of knocking first?"

"S-son?" Piccolo seemed flabbergasted. Heh, flabbergasted. That was a funny word. Goku didn't even know he knew that word, come to think of it.

"Whatsa matter?" He asked. Hearing his own voice reminded him. He'd been kiddie-sized.

"Oh yeah," he said. "Weird, huh?" He hopped down from the chair. "But 'mission accomplished,' anyway. Pilaf was gonna wish for immortality or ruling the world or something..." He spread his arms wide, indicating himself. "But it looks like he accidentally wished for somethin' else, huh?"

Goku started walking out of the room, giving Piccolo a playful jab in the stomach as he passed.

"Hyaah!"

He grinned at Piccolo, who didn't budge. "Just like the old days, eh Piccolo? I don't mind; it'll be kinda fun being a kid again for a while, at least until we can reverse it." His face suddenly became a bit more somber. "Chi-Chi'll probly throw a fit, though..."

At that moment, Dende and Popo reached the doorway. Goku waved cheerfully.

"Hay guyz lol"

"Goku...!" Popo exclaimed.

"What?" Dende double-taked between Popo and Goku. "That's Goku?"

"I know, crazy, right?" Goku walked past them and started off down the hall, not realizing that Piccolo still stood in the same spot, dumbfounded. "Boy, I'm starving! Anyone else want a sandwich?"

* * *

_Well, there ya go. "Finally," right? Sorry 'bout that... again. Not only have I been busy (_As outlined in the "dramatization" at the beginning_), but this chapter seemed harder to write... Perhaps because nothing really happened? It seems harder to write "filler" chapters like this than chapters where big, important, dramatic things happen._

_Also, I've gotta say... Whoever is in charge of designing Document Editing system really needs to be taken into a dark alley and shot (or fed to zombies). It must've taken me about 10 tries to get the formatting and spacing right after importing my perfectly-formatted word document. And it won't let me do things like right-align, or add extra blank line breaks (Which I REALLY want to do for dramatic effect at times), or have three or four random or similar symbols instead of heavy swearing, etc..._

_:P_

_Anyhoo, I'll try to get Chapter 6 written sometime before 2010... So stay tuned!_


	6. Third Time's The Harm

**DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED**

Chapter Six - _"Third Time's the Harm"_

The life of a News Anchor was a sweet life indeed. Good coffee, lots of attention, widespread notoriety, and of course, the splendidly high-level income. All that for doing little more than looking pretty and reading from a teleprompter.

The Anchorman leaned back in his chair a bit, to the annoyance of the woman who was touching up his hair. "Please stay still," she scolded.

"Sorry, doll," he replied. He stayed put, and watched the fast food commercial running on the monitors across the studio.

"..._McGladstones! Introducing the brand new, big, juicy Bacon Giant Burger! Guaranteed to clog your_..."

"...All done," the woman said suddenly, and retreated from the stage.

"Thank you much," He called after her. He glanced to his left, where his lovely co-host sat prepping herself. She noticed, and flashed a smile.

"Ready?" She asked.

"Always."

"Alright, you two! Look sharp!" The director called over. "Start with the deaths, as always! We're on in ten..."

He sat up straight, adjusted his suit jacket, then placed his arms on the desk, clasping his hands.

"Six... Five..."

His co-host did the same, while flicking her hair back behind her shoulders.

"Three... Two..."

Here we go... Time to shine.

"One, and!"

The director pointed to him. Rock and Roll.

"Good afternoon, East Capital!" He exclaimed, as the camera rolled in close. "This is DZX3 News at Five! I'm your host, Mike, and to my less-than-proverbial right is my lovely co-host..."

"Meredith," she finished. "Our top story continues to be the aftermath of Saturday's enigmatic, continent-wide earthquake."

"While damage to cities and structures has been fairly extensive," Mike continued, "the number of reported casualties has, fortunately, been quite low."

"We have a current, regularly updated list of identified casualties on our website." Meri added. "DZX3 and it's affiliates wish to offer their sincerest condolences to those who have suffered the loss of loved ones in the disaster."

"Perhaps no location was quite so notable in it's reaction to the quake, however," Mike shifted. "As the Tenkaichi Budokai grounds on Papaya Island. By sheer coincidence, the quake happened to strike on the day of the tournament, with a stadium full of people."

"The results would likely have been disastrous," Meredith continued, "as the stadium structures were not built to withstand earthquakes, since Papaya Island is not in a position on a tectonic plate suspect to them. However, thanks to the valiant and mighty efforts of the various Budokai contestants, any structural collapse was averted, and the attending crowds escaped with no more than minor injuries."

Mike spoke up again. "We now go live to Papaya Island, where, in related news, ace reporter Julian is awaiting the Tenkaichi Budokai council's decision as to the results of the interrupted final match. Julian?"

The output monitors shifted to a split screen, with Mike on the right and Julian on the left. The reporter was standing outside, amongst a crowd of raving, noisy Budokai fans.

"Hi, Mike!" Julian responded. "Looking good, Hollywood!"

"Thanks, Julian," Mike responded. "But... what's a 'Hollywood?' "

"..."

"..."

"...I'm... not sure..."

"Well, anyway," Mike salvaged the segment. "Has the council come to a decision yet?"

"Not just yet, Mike," Julian answered. "The council head is expected to come out these doors behind me," he said, the camera panning over and back. "And announce the results any moment now."

"Any hunches as to who it might be, Julian?" Meredith asked.

"Hard to say, Meri." Julian responded. "I'll tell ya though, I was watching the final match, and both contestants were truly awe-inspiring! They seemed dead even the whole way through, too! This reporter thinks it could go either way!"

"Well, while we're waiting on that," Mike said, Julian panning off the screen. "We have a touching story about a budding orphanage monastery in the north, founded and run by a man who locals are calling, 'the three-eyed saint...' "

"Hold on, Mike!" Julian interrupted, the screen returning to him. "The council head has just emerged from the doors! He's about to make the announcement!"

The camera panned over to a stout man sporting a robe and a fu-manchu beard. He proclaimed something that was incomprehensible to the camera, and cheers erupted from the crowd.

"Julian?" Mike spoke. "Julian, the camera couldn't quite pick that up! What did he say?"

"The winner has been decided, Mike!" Julian exclaimed joyfully, the camera returning to him. "Due to an impromptu forfeit by the other contender, the winner of the 31st Tenkaichi Budokai is..."

* * *

"..._Vegeta!"_

Bulma clapped her hands at the TV reporter's announcement, and turned to her husband beside her on the couch.

"Vegeta! You won!"

Vegeta continued scowling, obviously not as enthralled by the news.

"Yes, I heard the man." He turned back to the TV, practically snarling. "I won by a _forfeit._ Kakarrot decided there was something more important to do than finish our match, and he _left_."

Bulma gazed for a second, then sighed. Of course. Goku _had_ left. He hadn't shown back up afterwards, either. At least, not that they'd seen among the confusion. Granted, his reason was probably something important related to either the summoning or the freak earthquake, but that still didn't make it any less of an insult to Vegeta. Not to mention any less rude. Looked like the moody prince needed to be a bit consoled.

"You know," she said, leaning on him. "You're right. That WAS rude of Son to just leave like that." She pointed at him. "And you know what? Next time you see him just punch him in the face for it. You owe him one."

Vegeta continued scowling. Seems that tactic hadn't worked.

"But that stupid little Budokai match didn't mean anything, anyway," she continued. "It was fun, sure. But you had to hold back your huge strength, and you had so little space to fight in, and everything..."

Still scowling. Strike two. Time for the final approach.

"But still, you did _technically_ win," she concluded. "So what do you say we turn the TV off, and go..."

She leaned down to his ear.

"..._celebrate._"

Vegeta's face perked up. Bingo, that did it. In her decades with Vegeta, Bulma had learned that if there was anything that rivaled a Saiyan's appetite, it was his sex drive.

Vegeta stood up suddenly, and scooped Bulma up into his arms. She yelped in surprise.

" Sounds good to me," he said.

* * *

Selzer was kind of a nerd. But not in the traditional sense. He was more the artsy type. Geeky and a bit secluded in his hobby, but confident and well-mannered. Oh, and good-looking, too. A calm and kind face, and shaggy brown hair. Why were the artists always so irresistibly handsome?

Such were Pan's opinions of him from school. He was in her math class first, and then in her art class. They talked fairly often in the latter, as Pan wasn't that skilled an artist, and often got help from him. She actually helped _him_ in math, though. About a month ago, he'd asked her out. Pan had agreed, naturally, as boys usually avoided her once they witnessed her abnormal strength. Probably most of them couldn't deal with the fact that _a _girl was stronger than them, even if only by a few hundred thousand times. She didn't know his reasons, but Pan wasn't one to complain. "_Never look a gift horse in the mouth_," Grandpa Goku had once told her when she was little.

She'd responded, "_why?_"

"_Cuz'... uh... they have bad breath...?_"

She giggled a bit at the memory. Selzer, walking besides her, noticed, and smiled back, curious.

"What's so funny?"

"N-nothing!" She said.

It was a bright, cool May afternoon, a fairly favorable setting for their third date. Last time, they'd seen some B-rate, sci-fi drama thing called "_The World is a Robot."_ It was rather bad and nonsensical, so halfway through they'd sneaked out the same way they had sneaked in. This time, they were walking through Satan City's park district, on their way to shop, and probably eat someplace.

After another minute or two, Pan spoke up again.

"Hey, Selzer?"

"Yeah?"

"Uh... Why'd you ask me out?"

"Why in the world wouldn't I?" He responded, smiling warmly.

"Well, it's just that," Pan continued, a little unsure. "You watched the Budokai the other day, right?"

"Sure did."

"...And you saw how I easily I smacked that Yoyo guy around, who was like, 10 times my size, right?

"Yeah, you kicked tail."

"Even before that, you knew how strong I was. But most guys are so intimidated by that!" Pan exclaimed. "I mean, I don't really blame them. Who'd want to date a girl who's hundreds of times stronger than them?"

Selzer didn't respond. Pan leaned forward a bit as they walked, looking up at him.

"So why are you acting so different?" She asked. "Why... do you like me?"

Selzer stopped walking, and turned to Pan. He placed his hands on her shoulders, and spoke gravely.

"Pan... I have something to tell you."

"..?"

"...I'm a woman."

"...O.o"

After stoically watching her startled and confused expression for about ten seconds, he/she startled chortling, then laughed.

"I'm joking, Pan!" He comically assured her. "Listen... stop worrying so much. You're not some kind of plague-ridden freak."

Pan smiled dryly. "Oh, thank you. I guess you're right. But still," she mused. "You didn't answer me? Why?"

"Well, I just do, I guess." He assured, as the two continued walking. They came to an empty park bench and sat down. "I dunno, maybe the men in my family just have a thing for gorgeous, strong women."

Pan blushed. _Gorgeous_?' First time she'd heard anyone call her _that_. She'd always thought she looked pretty tomboyish. She always dressed sorta punky, and only grew out her hair to no more than the not-quite-shoulder length it was now, and usually wore combat boots, and...

"O-oh, uh..." She stuttered. "_Strong_... women, you say?"

_Damn_! She thought. NOT the adjective she'd meant to address!

"Yeah," he said, leaning back and gazing into space a bit. "My mom's really the one who wears the pants in our family. My granny Ran Fuan was quite a fighter back in her day, too."

Selzer crossed his arms and looked over at her. "But Pan," he said comfortingly. "You don't need to be so worried about the way you are. I mean, aren't you proud of your strength?"

"I don't know," she said. "Not really. I mean, not all the time. When I'm training with my grandpa, he praises me for my progress, and that makes me happy..."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but..." She frowned a bit. "He's pretty much the only one. My dad thinks it's pretty cool, too, I got it from him, after all. But he's a lot more concerned about school."

"Well, whatever other people think doesn't matter," he said. "Whether they're afraid of it like the bums at school, or don't really care about it like your family..."

He picked up her hand in his hands, and gazed into her eyes.

_Oh, he's good,_ Pan _thought. At least...I think so?_ She realized she was hyperventilating a bit, and her heart rate had doubled. _Okay, yeah, he is._

"...What matters is that you're proud of it. It's just one of the many things that make you special. To yourself... and me."

_Oh, sweet sassy molassy..._

Selzer began to lean in close. His intentions were clear, and Pan, visibly nervous and breathing heavily, wasn't sure if she was ready. Was she? Selzer was really nice... _and he didn't run away from me when I lifted that skycar on our first date. That was a good sign. But really, do I have time to go steady with him? I've got so much to do... school, training with Grandpa Goku and Oob, helping Dad build the garage, visiting Grandpa Satan on weekends... Plus, what's Selzer gonna be able to offer me? I mean, in the long run? He's an artist; artists don't make much money, even though he is good, and a hard worker... Grandpa Satan would at least pay for the wedding, probably. How many kids would we have? They'd be.. uh, one-eighth Saiyan? Would I work? As like, a personal trainer, or something? That would be cool, I guess. Lotsa money, too, if I don't end up breaking all the exercise equipment... or my clients, and __**OH MY GOD HE'S ABOUT TO KISS ME**..._

_...What was that?_

Pan's train of thought was abruptly derailed, when she heard a sharp sound off in the distance. Having been leaning backwards somewhat, she bolted upright...

_**THUNK!**_

...and conked Selzer square in the forehead.

"OOOOWWWW!"

He was nearly knocked off the bench from the impact, but Pan didn't feel it or notice. She turned around to listen further in the direction she'd heard the sound from.

"Did you hear that?"

"I don't...Am I bleeding?"

"It sounded like a gunshot!"

"I dunno, I can't hear much anything over this high-pitched ringing..."

"I'm gonna go check it out! Come on!"

She jumped off the bench, and ran a few steps before rapidly taking into the air into the direction of the noise. Selzer slowly and dizzily began to stand up, watching her go.

"H-hey, she really **can** fly," he remarked. The TV had not lied after all. "Wow...wHaT... a... A... kNoCkooooouuuut..."

He then lost consciousness.

* * *

As she landed, Pan realized what had just happened.

_CRAP!_ She thought. _I blew it!_ The gunshot had been too far for Selzer to hear. Only she with her Saiyan-enhanced senses had picked up the sound, which had actually originated from a good half-dozen city blocks away. Which meant that Selzer hadn't heard it. Which meant that Selzer would have still gone through with the kiss! _CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP!_ Plus, in hindsight, she realized she'd accidentally headbutted him! Lovely. Now she'd be lucky if he were still alive tomorrow, much less willing to go out with her again.

When she realized what the ordeal was over here, though, Pan's mood improved a bit. She was standing in front of a rather large branch of West City Savings and Loan, part of a rather large bank chain. And from what she was hearing around her, this one was currently in the middle of a rather tense holdup. With hostages.

_Goody,_ Pan thought. _I'm about to have me some punching bags._

A sizeable multitude of people had gathered, compressing their curious, sheep-like selves right up against the police barricade and proving nearly as much of a problem for the officers as the criminals inside. Pan began working her way through the tightly-packed gaggle of pedestrians, a feat that would likely be impossible for anyone that _couldn't_ literally pick up and relocate a dozen of them at a time. Pan didn't really have to go to such measures, though, as merely continuing to walk forward seemed to exert enough force to move people out of her way.

As she neared the front, she almost tripped over a small boy.

"Hey, watch out," she said, her tone low and serious.

She couldn't see the kid very clearly, and neither could he her, apparently.

"Oh, sorry," the kid replied in a high-pitched and slightly nasly voice. "Hey," he asked. "What's going on, anyway?"

"The bank's being robbed," she replied, starting to inch around him. "They've got hostages."

"Oh, really?" The kid started moving forward. "Well, guess I better get in there and stop 'em, then..."

Uh oh. Not good.

"Whoa there, _Suppaman_!" Pan grabbed him by the back of his shirt. She then realized that it wasn't just a normal shirt, but a _gi_ top. And not just any _gi_ top, but one of a familiar navy blue color. The kid was wearing Grandpa Goku's uniform, just like she and Oob did as his pupils.

_Huh?_ Pan pondered. _Did Grandpa take on a third student?_ He hadn't told _her_ about it, that was for sure. _I haven't seen him since the Budokai, so maybe he did_. Probably as a favor to Grandpa Satan or something. She'd have to ask Oob about it later. Either way, what kind of ideas was he putting into the new kid's head, to make him think he could take on a bunch of probably heavily-armed thugs? Then again, you wouldn't think a fourteen-year-old girl could, either. But Pan was obviously no ordinary fourteen-year-old girl. In contrast, this naive new kid was most definitely NOT in the slightest bit Saiyan.

Pan pulled him back behind her. "Don't think so, kiddo," she told him sternly. "Stay there safe out of sight," she told as she continued moving forward. "I'll take care of it." As she left, she heard the kid respond with a "heeey..." It sounded like it could have been a "hey" of recognition, but it was mostly likely just the kid being disappointed.

Pan finally came to one of the barrier gates at the front of the gathering, nonchalantly vaulted over it, and, clear of the crowd, began walking towards the bank's front doors. A few yards away, one of the police officers, a hefty man with a large mustache, noticed her.

"Hey, young lady," he said as he swiftly closed the gap between them and reached for her. "You can't..."

With a slight _swish_ noise, she zipped over to the doors at speeds faster than the cop could track, and casually walked inside.

The bank lobby was rather spacious and ornate, with imitation gold leafing and fancy silk curtains adorning the various archways, pillars and windows within it. It was to be expected, as this was probably the richest bank line in the world. Pan wondered how much tellers got paid here. She figured she might apply for a job...

...You know, some time later, when she wasn't surrounded by a bunch of thugs pointing various firearms at her.

They had formed a circle around her within seconds of her entering. She looked around past them, and saw all the hostages, about twenty people, huddling in a scared mass in a far corner. None of them seemed injured, and she noticed several fresh bullet holes in the ceiling. Good. The shots she heard earlier must have just been to scare them, then.

Another man pushed his way into the circle, and stared with a menacing smirk down at her. He was much taller, buffer and gruffer looking than the others, and far more heavily armed. He was probably the leader.

"Well, boys," he said, his voice like greasy sandpaper. "Looks like we got us u'nuther _guest_, huh?" He put sarcastic emphasis on 'guest.'

Pan smiled. Yup, he was the "brains" behind the job.

"You know, _gentlemen_," she said, returning the sarcasm. "This bank charges hefty fines for over-withdrawals."

The leader grinned deviously. "Oh, an' I s'pose yer here t' collect?"

He pulled his glock off his belt holster, slapped a round into it, and aimed it square at Pan's forehead.

"Can I pay ya in _lead_?"

Pan returned his grin.

"Nope, sorry," she responded defiantly. "I only accept _teeth._"

The boss stared blankly for a second. Apparently, either Pan's nerve had shocked him a bit, or he was struggling to get the joke. Whichever it was, after a few seconds, he broke into loud laughter. His crew followed suit.

That was when Pan attacked.

She jumped into the air, and swung her right leg upwards, her boot catching the boss smack dab in the bottom of the jaw. He shot straight up, several pieces of Pan's "payment" flying from his mouth, before his head crashed through the ceiling. He hung there, limp like a rag doll, with his head firmly lodged in the plaster.

Pan landed on the ground, and snatched one of the teeth out of the air as it fell.

Initially, all the thugs could do was stare at their boss, from whom a low, pained groan escaped. After a long moment, all their heads, in unison, slowly angled back down to stare at Pan, their facial expressions aghast and dumbfounded. A foul smell began wafting from the trousers of one.

"Stick a few light bulbs on him, he'll make a nifty chandelier," she remarked. She then held up the tooth between her thumb and index finger, and grinned deviously.

"Who's next?"

* * *

A minute or two later, the SWAT team stormed the bank. A risky move, to be sure, but they couldn't afford to wait any longer. The addition of another hostage, possibly one with suicidal vigilante motives, had increased the layer of risk to the point where immediate action was needed. They burst through the doors and windows, to find the perpetrators...

...K.O.'d?

They counted eight in total. The first and most notable one was dangling from above, his head planted in the ceiling. Two more were in a pile, growing bruises on their foreheads seeming to indicate that they'd been forcibly headbutted together. Another was lying slumped over a broken desk, another was upside-down against a counter, and yet another was lying next to a burst-open bag of coins, which, from the odd marks on his face, seemed to have made significant contact with his head. The remaining two were simply lying in different spots on the floor. All were out cold.

Over by the tellers' counters near where the fifth thug lay were the hostages, freaked out but seemingly unharmed, and beginning to stand and chatter amongst themselves.

And sitting coolly and confidently on the counter, swinging her legs and examining in her hand what seemed to be several teeth, was a black-haired, young teenage girl. She noticed the SWAT team, smiled, and waved with her free hand.

"Hey guys! Nice of you to join us!"

* * *

A few minutes later, Pan, along with the hostages, was escorted outside by several of the SWAT team officers. Naturally, the press was all over them.

"Captain Chapat! Captain Chapat!" One woman reporter closed in. "Gwen Spradling, DZX3. What just happened in there? Have the culprits been apprehended?"

"Uh... yes," he responded. "We got them. No losses on either side."

"But it happened so quickly!" She pressed. "And there were no gunshots! Did the gang surrender?"

"No, not exactly."

"Then, how?"

Chapat motioned to Pan.

"She did it."

"...Excuse me?"

"She did it," he repeated, waving Pan over. "She, uh, beat them all up."

The woman stood confused for a moment.

"Really?"

"Uh huh."

Pan arrived, noticed the reporter and her crew, and spoke meekly.

"Oh, uh, hi?"

"Hey, Rick," the woman beckoned her cameraman. "Get her in the shot."

He nodded, and angled the camera towards Pan. The woman situated herself in front of her, and spoke to the camera.

"Mike, it seems there's been a seemingly miraculous turn of events, as this young girl has apparently single-handedly combated and incapacitated the criminals." She leaned down to Pan. "What's your name?"

* * *

Pan wasn't much of a glory hog, but still, she was a little surprised. What? Not even the press recognized her? But she was just on TV the other day! Just about everyone in the world had watched! Blah, what else could she do but remind them? She leaned forward towards the outheld microphone.

"Son Pan."

A few people in the crowd heard, and their chatter rose in volume.

"Son Pan?"

"I know that name!"

"She was in the Budokai!"

"She's Mr. Satan's granddaughter!"

Within seconds, cheers began erupting from the crowd. Pan couldn't help but smile a bit. Well, this is kinda pleasant...

Her enjoyment of the attention was cut a bit short, when she heard a familiar voice. She looked over to see an elderly man trying to get past several police officers.

"Darnit, don't give me that!" He yelled. "I'm telling you, I know that heroic young lady! Git outta my way!"

Pan smiled as she recognized him. The bald head. The long mustache and beard. The hunched back. The tacky, tropical outfit. The oversized sunglasses. The walking stick in one hand, and a bag from the _Boundaries_ bookstore down the street which probably contained newly-purchased porn in the other. Unmistakeable.

"Master Roshi!" She gleefully waved to him.

Seeing that they apparently _were_ acquainted, the police officers shrugged, and stepped aside to let Roshi through. With a "heh, that's better," Roshi walked over to Pan.

Grandpa Goku and Grandma Chi-Chi had introduced her to Roshi a few years ago, and the two had hit it off. Learning that Roshi had been Goku's sensei back in the day had excited Pan, who insisted on sparring with him, to which Roshi had agreed. Unfortunately, the idea of '_the student having long since surpassed the master_' hadn't quite crossed little seven-year-old Pan's mind, and she had been informed a tad too late that she had to hold back more than usual, as Roshi wasn't nearly as strong as Goku. The result had been Roshi, while having his head bandaged a few minutes later, laughing heartily and assuring a sniffling and apologetic young Pan that he was quite alright, and she had every bit just as much spunk in her as Goku had as a boy.

Later during that same visit, Pan had been confused when she stumbled upon some odd magazines which, for some reason, contained pictures of naked ladies in them. Pan had never been quite so frightened by the actions of a single person before in her life as when, after she showed the strange magazines to Grandma Chi-Chi and inquired as to what they were, the woman had gone on a veritable rampage, scaring the bejeezus out of both present humanoid males by yelling things along the lines of "put them away for crying out loud," and "there's a little girl around," and "why didn't you do something about it, Goku."

Despite the rough start, Pan and Roshi were quite good friends. Whenever Pan was in the area, either simply passing by, or flying around the world for training, she's make sure to stop by his little island to spend a few minutes sparring, playing with Umigame, or just have a quick cup of lemonade. One day a year or two ago, she'd insisted on trying a gulp of Roshi's beer instead. The results weren't pretty. She'd flown face-first into the side of a mountain on the way home in her buzz-incuded dizziness.

Now, back in the present, Roshi reached and addressed her.

"Wow," he said, noticing the police starting to bring out the cuffed, half-conscious crooks. "Looks you handed these guys rears to them pretty good!"

Pan nodded. "Mmm-hmm."

"I was, heh-heh-heh," Roshi held up his bag. "_Running some errands_ down the street, when I saw what was happening on the TV. I didn't expect you to be around, though. What were you doing 'round these parts?"

"I, uh..." Pan looked downward bashfully and shuffled her foot a bit. "I was sorta on a date..."

Roshi smiled. "Oh, ho ho! Imagine that!"

Pan scowled playfully. "_Imagine that_?" She grabbed and yanked on his beard. "What's **that** supposed to mean?"

"Owowow! Nothing! Heh-heh!" She released him. "So," he said, rubbing his sore chin. "Where _is_ the lucky fella?"

"Oh!" Pan realized. "I guess he's still back at the park..."

"Hey!"

Both parties turned, the calling voice somehow familiar to both of them. Emerging from the crowd was the little boy from earlier. He waved to both of them.

"Hi, guys!"

He jumped over the barricade and ran over to them. Since the danger was over and they were busy, the police didn't seem to care.

"Glad to see the crowd didn't squash you," Pan remarked.

"Yeah, me too!" The boy looked at Roshi and waved. "Yo, old-timer! Long time, no see! How ya doing?"

"Huh?" Pan was even further confused. "You know Master Roshi?"

The boy looked at her like she had two heads, his eyebrow raised in confusion. "Of course I do," he responded. "Geez, Pan, you're acting weird today."

"What?" Why was this kid acting like he knew her? "Have we met?"

She leaned down to the old hermit. "Master Roshi, who IS this kid?"

Roshi didn't respond. He merely stood there, shocked, staring at the boy.

"G-Goku?"

Pan double-taked back at the boy. GOKU? What? The similarities suddenly hit her. He DID look like him!

"G-g-grandpa?"

The boy, apparently Goku, waved again.

"Whassup?"


	7. We Interrupt This FanFic

**Author's Note:** _"The 'Linsthergork' is a Namekian reproductive organ. Located down within the pelvic region, it secretes several unique proteins that contribute to the formation of Namekian eggs. It is not often discussed openly, not only because of the embarrassing nature of the organ, but also because of its silly name."_

**DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter "Seven" - _"__We Interrupt This FanFic...__"_

Nappa slowly and repeatedly blinked, now that he had physical eyes with which to do so, and surveyed his brand-new surroundings. He couldn't see very well yet, but he seemed to be indoors, in a wide, darkened room. Various rope and frame-based rigging was suspended above him, and the floor was slick and tiled.

"...Where am I?" He asked nobody in particular.

Suddenly, he was enveloped in a blindingly bright light. He raised a hand, which he now had two of again, to shield his eyes. He was in some sort of spotlight. Brought back to life, and he ends up in some sort of enemy camp? Just his luck...

Suddenly, on the other side of the room, another spotlight was turned on, and a previously unseen figure came into view within it. Nappa squinted, but not even the individual's huge hair clued Nappa into its identity, until he heard it's voice.

"Hello, Nappa."

"Vegeta!" Nappa was surprised. "Where am I? What happened?" He rambled on as Vegeta steadily walked toward him, the spotlight following. "The last thing I remember, we were on Earth, going after the Dragon Balls. Kakarrot showed up and fought me..." He rubbed his temple. "Everything after that is a blur..."

"Well, no worries," Vegeta said with a smirk. "Because you're back now, and you've got an opportunity to claim a prize far greater than any Dragon Balls..."

That snagged Nappa's attention, and a devious grin slid onto his face. "Heheh, right to the point, eh Vegeta?" He cracked his knuckles, which he now had again. "So tell me more. What do we have to do?"

"Hmm, it may be more difficult than you'd expect," Vegeta remarked. "and you'll have competition."

"Competition? For me? Hah!" Nappa thumped his chest. "I'm a Saiyan Elite! Who could possibly compete with me?" He thought for a second. "Uh... besides you... and Zarbon and Dodoria... and the Ginyu Force... oh, and Freeza, Cooler and King Cold. Probably Kakarrot, too... and..."

"But that's the challenge for you, Nappa," Vegeta cut in. "It's not a contest of force."

"What?"

"It's a contest," Vegeta smirked. "Of knowledge."

"Knowledge?" Nappa processed this for a moment. _Knowledge? Challenge? Competition? How could they all be combined? What was... Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, sweet, merciful, minty multiverses, __NO!_

"N-no..." He stammered. "Y-you can't mean..."

"That's right!" Vegeta exclaimed, as he raised his hand. He snapped his fingers, and the entire chamber was filled with light. Several more figures became visible, all standing behind waist-high podiums. The walls were decorated with all sorts of sparkling and artistic patterns and outcroppings, as well as two giant video screens. One of the walls, now evident as a curtain, rose up out of view, to reveal...

... A live studio audience.

"You're on, _You Get What I'm Saiyan,_" Vegeta continued enthusiastically, as both screens displayed the show's name in a bold, flashy fashion. "The only TV trivia game show exclusively featuring the universe's proudest warrior race!" An poppy upbeat tune came over the loudspeakers, and the audience began to applaud and cheer.

"Noooooooooo!"

"That's right, Nappa!" Vegeta, now revealed to be in a polyester suit and speaking into a skinny, 70's-era microphone, continued addressing the semi-catatonic Saiyan. "You've been brought back to life to take part in this fantastic competition, thanks to the revival powers of Shenlong!"

"No problem," The dragon called from within the audience.

"Now, my friend, If you'd please," Vegeta began leading Nappa over towards a row of podiums, the leftmost of which was unoccupied and waiting for him. "Now that we're all here, why don't we formally introduce all our contestants?" He gestured towards the other side of the stage. "And to do that, let's go to you, Kakarrot!"

"_Kakarrot_...?" Came a voice from one of the as-of-yet unnamed other contestants. No way you can guess who it is. Not in a million years. I'll bet you five dollars.

"Thanks, Vegeta! Don't mind if I do!" A spotlight gave luminance to a previously dark corner of the stage. Sitting neatly in a small balcony was the newly child-sized Son Goku, the show's co-host. He started speaking as the screens began displaying the contestants individually, starting with Nappa.

"First off, we have Nappa! Born a Saiyan Elite, Nappa spent most of his early years conquering planets!" The screen showed a picture of Nappa as a child, with a full head of long, flowing hair, holding up the crispy carcass of an unidentified alien while waving to the camera. "Eventually, he was promoted to the illustrious position of 'Vegeta's babysitter,' a job he would hold until I kicked his butt on Earth, and Vegeta blew him up." A freeze frame of Nappa's shocked face as Vegeta's blast approached him was shown on the screen. Vegeta could be heard giggling.

"Can... Can I please get a shirt, or something?" Nappa inquired. " I'm still wearing the wrecked armor I was wearing when I died, and it's cold in here..."

"No!" Vegeta scolded. "No shirt for you!"

Nappa pouted.

"Nowadays, Nappa spends most of his time floating around aimlessly as a puffy little soul-cloud in Hell. He hopes to one day regain a physical form, and proceed to open a bookstore."

"...I do?"

"Moving along," Goku continued, as the camera focused on the next in line. "We have King Vegeta!"

The older Saiyan waved to the camera. "Hi, everybody!" He saw Vegeta, and waved his whole arm and upper body frantically. "HIYA, VEGGIE!"

"HIYAS!" Vegeta replied.

Goku continued. "King Vegeta was born into Saiyan royalty, about who-cares years ago. He spent most of his early years killing things, and eventually came to lead the nomadic Saiyan race around the universe all willy-nilly as they spent most of their time killing things." The screen showed some fuzzy old videos of a younger King Vegeta leading a bunch of other Saiyans in a conga line. "Eventually, King Vegeta would end up having a hand in eradicating the entire Tsufrian race."

"They started it!" King Vegeta protested, banging on his podium and pointing at the screen. It showed a city square full of dead Tsufrians, one of which King Vegeta could be seen positioning into silly poses.

"Or... DID they?" Goku commented, rubbing his chin inquisitively.

"No spoilers, Kakarrot. Didn't you read the intro?"

"Fine, party-pooper. Anyway, " Goku continued narrating. "He would go on to take their planet over as a home for his people..."

"Aaawww..." Proclaimed the audience.

"...Stealing their technology, using it to start expanding the Saiyans' territory. He soon formed an alliance, otherwise known as a '_we'll-work-for-you-so-please-don't-kill-us'_ deal, with Freeza." A press photo was displayed of the King and Freeza shaking hands after the signing of their agreement.

"Rumors have it that Freeza was fibbing." The screen revealed a picture of Freeza urinating on a smoldering chunk of the freshly-destroyed Planet Vegeta, lending heavily to the theory.

"At some point, King Vegeta forgot to wear protection when with his queen, and ended up spawning the feral little freak we all now know as Prince Vegeta."

"Hey!"

"These days," Goku continued, "King Vegeta serves his community in Hell as a fashion consultant. In fact, I believe he's worn something to model for us today, is that right?"

"Wait, what?"

"Don't mind if I do!" King Vegeta jumped, did a midair frontflip, and stuck his dismount, positioning himself elegantly in the middle of the stage. The audience was thrilled. The lights dimmed, a spotlight focused onto the senior Vegeta, and Right Said Fred's "_I'm Too Sexy_" began to pulsate throughout the studio. The King started to pace, as Goku emcee'd.

"King Vegeta is wearing a diamond-encrested turquoise Chanelle gown, accented by a silver bracelet and necklace by Dolce & Gabbana. He is also modeling a pair of Rhinestone Peep-toe pumps by designer Giuseppe Zanotti! Fabulous!"

On the song's final downbeat, King Vegeta struck a pose, a sexy pout on his face, and with one hand on his hip and the other raised defiantly in the air. The crowd went nuts. Vegeta was somewhat less impressed.

"...Apparently, several decades in Hell has affected my father's reasoning somewhat..."

"Aw, that's not nice, Vegeta!" Goku exclaimed. "I'm sure his brain is perfectly fine, and..."

"Look! I'm a duck!" King Vegeta exclaimed as he began to noisily waddle back to his podium.

"...O-KAY!" Vegeta took over. "Next down the line, it's... Kakarrot?"

"Uh... I'm still over here, Vegeta. That's Tullece."

Indeed, stationed at the podium was Tullece, a figure infamous across the internet and in ice cream parlors everywhere for looking exactly like Goku. He appeared somewhat unamused as Vegeta rapidly looked back and forth between him and Goku.

"I see. I was wondering how you went back to adulthood all of a sudden," Vegeta remarked.

"Which, really, you're not even meant to know about until the next chapter."

"Who is he, again?"

"Tullece. He showed up that one time and planted the big tree on Earth. You weren't there. We had to beat him up ourselves."

"Oh? Where was I?"

"I don't think you'd shown up yet..." Goku mused, scratching his head. "Or, maybe... you had already come and ran away? I dunno, my head hurts..."

"Yeah, yeah, we get it," Tullece started to complain. "Movie continuity's a b&#. Now where's the fruit platter? I only came because you people said there'd be a fruit platter."

"Pssht! You and your fruits!" King Vegeta taunted. "Maybe you ARE a fruit!"

"No," Tullece responded, annoyed. "I just like to _eat_ fruits."

"Oh, I'll bet you DO!"

"YOU'RE the one in the freaking _dress_!"

"Born a low-class Saiyan," Goku routinely went on to Tullece's bio. "Tullece was sent off to conquer planets as a child. Eventually, he came across the home world of the Tree of Might, and after killing all the planet's inhabitants and boosting his power by eating the fruit, he took some seeds and set off to gather henchmen and play '_Johnny Appleseed's Evil Twin'_ across the Universe. Eventually he showed up on Earth, where I proceeded to kick his butt."

"You did not."

"Did too."

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not! I was smearing you and your little friends all across the landscape! But then you _**cheated**_!"

"Oh, you're just a sore loser."

"With a sore hiney, too, I'll bet," King Vegeta put in.

Tullece firmly planted_ (Get it? "Planted?" It's a joke, see, cause he did that thing with the Tree of Might, and-) _both hands on his podium and loudly addressed Vegeta. "Look, can I PLEASE get moved to a different spot? If I absolutely have to play this game, I'd rather not keep getting harassed by the transvestite psycho," he pointed to King Vegeta on his right.

"Fruitsy-poo, fruitsy-poo!"

Tullece then thumbed towards the figure on his left. "And _THIS_ guy keeps giving me weird looks!"

"_Kakarrot_?" Replied 'THIS guy.'

"Oh, quit whining," Goku scolded. "Don't make me unload a can of Spirit Bomb on you again!"

Tullece pouted.

"...Either way," Goku continued. "That brings us to our next contestant! Say hello, Broly!"

"KAKARROT!"

"Hiya. Nice tie."

"KAKARROT!" Broly gave a thumbs-up.

"How's Paragus?"

"KAKARROT!" He shook his head in dismay.

"Still dead, huh? Bummer." Something then caught Goku's attention. "Hey, Vegeta, what's wrong?"

Vegeta was on his knees, staring catatonic at Broly. "It... It's all over," he whimpered. "He's the Legendary Super Saiyan! He'll kill us all!"

"Oh yes, that reminds me," Goku spoke while ignoring Vegeta, who continued to whine and collapse into the fetal position. "As you can see, Broly is in his big, husky ol' 'Legendary Super Saiyan' state. We normally don't let our contestants to be transformed while playing. However, our judges decided to make an exception for Broly, after he killed them."

"KAKARROT!" Broly nodded, and held up a pair of blood-soaked skulls which he began to use as puppets.

"Plus, he's pretty darn funny like this," Goku remarked, as Broly threw one of the skulls into the audience at high speed, killing a random Namekian on impact.

"Aagh! My linsthergork! He ruptured my linsthergork!"

"But I can kick his butt if we need to," Goku remarked. "So no problem."

Vegeta took notice of this, and looked up. "Wait, what?"

"Uh, yeah, Vegeta," Goku informed him. "We're both a lot stronger than Broly now."

"We are?" Vegeta stared, and blinked a couple times before his eyes lit up, and he stood. "Oh yeah! We are!" He pointed at Broly. "Damn straight! Cause any trouble, and I'll blast you to smithereens!"

"...KAKARROT!"

"Anyway," Goku proceeded. The screen displayed a picture of Broly as a crazy little baby. "Despite being low-class, Broly was born with a battle power of 10,000, making it immediately obvious that he was the Legendary Super Saiyan. However, fearing what Freeza might do, King Vegeta decided to have Broly and his whiny father Paragus executed, rather than doing the smart thing, and keeping Broly safe so that he might grow up to just easily overthrow Freeza instead."

"Oh, damn! That was _**you?**_" King Vegeta started to panic. "I've gotta disguise myself somehow... I know!" From out of nowhere he produced and donned a pair of Groucho-glasses. "Now NOBODY will recognize me!"

"Managing not just to survive that, but escaping Planet Vegeta's destruction too, Broly went on to become a nutty, near-unstoppable demonic force of nature, wreaking havoc across the universe, until I kicked his butt."

"Nowadays," Vegeta, back to himself, continued. "Broly's hobbies include smashing Kakarrot, screaming at Kakarrot, blasting Kakarrot, and volunteering at his local animal shelter on weekends." A picture was displayed of the giant Super Saiyan happily, yet still insanely, rolling around on the floor as a veritable swarm of dachshund puppies crawled all over him and licked his face. The mutilated corpses of various other social workers were visible in the background.

"So what's his deal with you, Kakarrot?" Tullece made the mistake of asking.

"Well, it seems when we were babies, I was in the crib next to him in the nursery, and I cried a lot," Goku explained. "I guess that helped make him crazy, and now he goes into a rage of violent, merciless death whenever he sees my face."

"Okay, but then why does he keep looking at ME like I'm..."

"..."

"...Oh,_ SHI-_"

"KAKARROOOOOT!"

Ignoring Tullece's plight, Vegeta pressed on.

"Last but not least, meet Selypa!"

The female warrior, dressed in a modest yet becoming business casual outfit, waved amicably. "Hey. You're all freaks."

"Oh, you know it, baby!" King Vegeta exclaimed amorously, winking at Selypa while making pelvic thrusts. "How about after this, you and me ditch this lame joint and go play a little game of our own, huh?"

"KAKARROT!" Broly imitated the movement.

"...You're wearing a _dress_." Selypa pulled out a scouter and scanned the bearded and fabulous Saiyan. "...And apparently, I'm stronger than you. Remind me, WHY are you our king, again?"

"'Cuz I'm just THAT _hot_!"

"Right."

"AAAAANYWAAAY," Vegeta cut in. "Born a low-class Saiyan fighter - whoa, I'm seeing a trend, here - Selypa spent her childhood wandering with the rest of the Saiyans, causing trouble on distant planets." The picture displayed was that of a young Selypa nailing head shots on Ewoks. "Eventually, she was inserted into a Saiyan squad, the leader of which was Bardock, Kakarrot's father. They prospered, conquering many planets. The days were merry..." A picture was shown of a drinking contest between Bardock and Panbukin at the Saiyans' Christmas party, with the rest of the squad cheering them on. "...Until Dodoria killed all of them but Bardock, who was then killed by Freeza."

"Uh.." Selypa spoke to Goku, who was staring at her wonderingly. "What's your problem, kid?"

"Are you my mommy?"

She was taken aback. "W-what? No! What makes you think that?"

"Well, you look a lot like Pan, and apparently this Bardock guy was my dad, so..."

"What? Me and Bardock?" She blushed and shook her head. "No way!"

"But in this one fanfic I read..."

"No! Absolutely not! We were just teammates!" She crossed her arms in denial. "You can't believe ANYTHING you read in fanfictions, kid. They're pretty much all misleading and inaccurate." She leaned forward, and put her hand to her mouth to address him. "Not to mention terribly out of character. I mean, just look at_ this_ chapter..."

Goku stared for a minute, then shrugged. "Okay, then. It was just a run-to-you-for-comfort thingie, anyway."

"Comfort? Why?"

"Toma dumped him."

Selypa's eye twitched. "I can't believe I'm asking, but for who?"

"Uh," Goku picked up and read a printout. "Cell."

"But Cell didn't even exist yet!"

"I know, it's weird!"

"Can we just start the damn game already?" Tullece peeked out from under his podium and yelled.

"My thoughts exactly!" Vegeta chimed in. "Okay, let's get this thing rolling..."

"Okay..."

"Whoo-hoo! Ye-yuh!"

"It's about time."

"KAKARROT!"

"Me and Bardock...?"

"...After these words from our sponsors!"

A collective "WHAT" burst forth from the contestants, as the cameras panned away and the station cut to commercials.

_**CHHHHHHHT!**_

"-down to '_Crazy Wheelo's Appliance Depot,_' for the best deals on new and pre-owned washers, driers, microwaves, giant brain-driven robots, and so much more! We've got the lowest prices anywhe-"

_**CHHHHHHHT!**_

"Make you an offer you can't ref-"

_** CHHHHHHHT! **_

"Coming up next, more _Naruto!_ Only on Cartoon Network! No really, it's the _**ONLY**_ thing we ever-"

_** CHHHHHHHT! **_

"My next guest is a close friend of mine..."

Kuririn sat at a mahogany desk, wearing a dark blue suit with a silvery tie to match his graying temples. He motioned to stage right, and addressed his audience.

"…Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the god of Earth and keeper of the Dragon Balls, Dende!"

The audience broke into applause as the band played a jazzy little entrance tune. Dende walked onto the stage, waving meekly as he was obviously unsure as to just what was going on. Kuririn enthusiastically shook Dende's hand, as the young Namekian reached his seat. They both sat, and Kuririn motioned to the band.

"Vegeta and the Henchmen Band, folks!"

The band, featuring Vegeta on keyboard and main vocals, Medamacha on Guitar, Zangya on bass, and Cacao on drums, all waved.

"How's it going, Dende?"

"Oh, very well, Kuririn," Dende smiled and responded. "Things have been generally peaceful on Earth, and I'm grateful for that."

"Generally peaceful? What about the whole Dragon being summoned and causing the global earthquake and the destruction and all that crap?"

"Oh, I thought you meant besides that."

"So, how're things going at the Palace?"

"Oh, yes! We just finished remodeling the interiors of the watch towers! You know, the smaller ones that stick up? But then Goku knocked one of them down..."

"Uh-huh..."

"Mr. Popo touched up the paint trim around the door to the Room of Spirit and Time just the other day. It looks great now."

"You don't say," Kuririn lazily remarked as he began to play with a pencil. "How's old Popo doing, anyway?"

"He's doing well."

"Piccolo?"

"He's been acting a bit strangely since the weird summoning, which hasn't been explained yet, which makes things really awkward for us in a filler chapter like this."

"Which brings me to my next and not-boring guest..."

"...'not boring?'"

"Ladies and gentlemen, the ever-sensational and never-punctual author, the writer known as Kaboom!"

The audience broke into thunderous applause, as a 20-ish, devilishly attractive, casually-dressed, and immensely talented young man entered from stage left. He waved, and took a seat next to Dende.

* * *

At that moment, hundreds of thousands of fan-fiction elitists across the planet simultaneously clutched their heads and screeched in agony.

"AAAAAAAIIIIEEE! SELF-INSERTION!"

* * *

"Oh, shut your pie traps!" Kaboom angrily exclaimed in no particular direction. "It's a non-story humor chapter! Lighten the hell up!"

He paused, noticed everyone staring at him awkwardly, and then sheepishly took his seat.

"Where were we?"

"Well," Kuririn cut to the chase. "When graced with the presence of such a prestigious guest as yourself..."

(_A-hem_.)

"...What else can we do but have an interview?"

"Oh, sure. Fine with me. I'm sure there's ALL kinds of things the readers are just itching to know, about myself and the story."

"You bet. Let's get down to it then."

The one called Kaboom shifted in his seat, eagerly awaiting the questions.

"...How much exactly do you suck?"

"Huh?"

"Why the insane multi-month gaps between chapters?"

"Well, um..."

"What excuse do you possibly have for making the poor readers wait over three months for a meaningless filler chapter?"

"I... you see... lots of planning, and I had to keep changing things, a-a-and..."

"...And WHY," Kuririn stood, pounded his desk, and pointed accusingly at the guest author. "haven't _**I**_ been in the story yet, dammit?"

"Uh... Kuririn, perhaps you should calm down a bit," Dende encouraged the maddened and diminutively-statured host. "I'm sure there are some good reasons..."

"I will NOT calm down!" Krurin yelled, and continued angrily pointing at the guest. "You! Apologize to the readers!"

"I'm so sorry!" Kaboom threw up his arms in exasperation. "I am a lowly worm! I have let you all down!"

"Darn straight! Lean over here so I can slap you!"

Dende interrupted. "Maybe it would be best to move on...?"

Kuririn let out a heavy sigh, and sat back down in his chair. "Fine," he muttered, before looking at Kaboom one last time. "What possible reason could you have, anyway?"

"Two words: Phantom. Hourglass."

Kuririn pondered this new information for a moment.

"All is forgiven," He replied. "Now, without further adieu, let's continue onto the next chunk of our show, the Top Ten list!"

A flashy title with the words "**TOP TEN**" in big, bold, 3D letters arced across the screen, before the view returned to Kuririn and the guests.

"For this week's top ten," Kuririn dictated. "We have the 'Top Ten Pathetic or Hilarious Villain Moments!"

The crowd broke into cheerful applause.

"Heh," Vegeta commented. "Now this is my kind of list."

"Oh, that reminds me," Dende pointed a few pages upwards, and enquired of Kaboom. "How is it that Vegeta's in both shows?"

"Oh, I just felt like it. Couldn't think of anyone better."

"You're just really lazy, aren't you?"

"...Yes."

"Number ten!" Kuririn abruptly began the list, accompanied by a constant drum roll. "Vegeta is rendered helpless and at Kuririn's mercy!"

"What the f*ck?"

"Hee, hee, hee..." Kaboom, like the audience, found humor and pleasure in Vegeta's surprise and dissatisfaction. He was shifty like that.

"Number nine," Kuririn continued. "Cell throwing a temper tantrum, before barfing up my wife and then blowing himself up!"

"I could make a meme joke here, but that'd be the second time this chapter, so I'll restrain myself."

"Number eight! Freeza, chopping himself in half!"

"Hahahahaha!"

"Number seven! Freeza chopped in half AGAIN!"

"Hahahahaha!"

"I get it!" Shouted a random Fry from the audience.

"Number six! Pilaf, period."

"Why have I gotten so little response about those guys?"

"Because," Zangya spoke up. "They suck. Just like the idea of having character-narrated intros and outros."

"Oh, shush your sexy blue self."

"Number five! Freeza getting his tail chopped off by Kuririn!"

"Wow," Kaboom commented. " 'Villain actually gets damaged by Kuririn' seems to be a common concept of 'pathetic' around here."

"Yeah, you want a quick demonstration?" Kuririn sarcastically responded, positioning himself to charge a Kienzan

"Uh, carry on."

"Number four! Garlic Jr. go down the hoooole... Again! Number three! Ginyu switches bodies with a frog!" Kuririn paused. "Hey, I wonder what happened to him, anyway?"

"Well, Namek blew up," Kaboom exclaimed. "So I guess he _croaked_!"

_Ba-dum-pish!_

"Good job, Cacao."

"_Da!"_ The cyborg resumed the drum roll

"Number two! Slug is beaten by whistling!"

"Ah, Slug," Dende remarked. "Yet another Namekian of whom we know so little about."

"Yeah, good ol' Slug. I wonder," Kaboom commented ominously while stroking his chin. "What could EVER be his story..."

"No spoilers!" A rather irritated Vegeta scolded the author.

"Fine, party pooper." Kaboom went back to typing.

"...And the number one pathetic or hilarious villain moment is," Kuririn teased, as the drum roll intensified.

"Broly, defeated by water!"

A more significant rimshot from Cacao accompanied the laughter and applause of the audience.

* * *

In another part of the fanfic, it was the middle of an intense lightning round of trivia questions, and Tullece was pressed to provide an answer.

"Uh... hemlock?"

**_BZZZT!_**

"Ooh, I'm sorry," Vegeta consoled. "The answer was 'Planet Thormasia Phi VII."

"Oh," Tullece lamented. "Wait, what? What does that have to do with-"

Broly suddenly let out a thunderous sneeze, the force from which instantly and violently eradicated a good third of the audience.

"Whoa nelly!" King Vegeta exclaimed.

* * *

"Hmmm, yeah," Kaboom mused as he glanced upwards at the cutaway. "I think it's about time we got back to those guys. This segment's starting to wear thin."

"What?" Kuririn protested. "You can't end my section already! The best part's coming up next!"

"Really? What would that be?"

"Yamcha and Puar."

Dende gasped in horror. "Don't tell me it's..."

"Stupid pet tricks."

"A-_**YUP**_," Kaboom busily returned to his laptop, determined to change the course of the chapter. "Time to end this chunk, before Letterman sues me. Let's see... tweak some dialogue here, enter a character there, and..."

"No, wait, it's good! I promise!" Kuririn yelled. "How many other cats on the planet can shape-shift and-"

"Kuririn!"

Kuririn's eyes went wide with catatonic shock. "E-e-eighteen?"

His wife stormed in from stage left, and marched up to him. "What the hell are you doing here? You told me you were going bowling with Gohan! How did you end up on a variety show!"

"It's his fault, honey!" Kuririn desperately pointed at Kaboom. "He's the author! He picked me for this part of the chapter! I had nothing to do with it!"

"You?" Eighteen turned her gaze towards Kaboom. "You're the author, huh?"

She leaned down close to him, and he began to flop-sweat. In a low, menacing tone, she spoke to him.

"Why haven't I been in the story yet?"

"Uh..."

Kaboom pressed a single key on his laptop.

"Bye!"

_** CHHHHHHHT! **_

"Alright, everyone, this is it! The final round!"

Vegeta enthusiastically addressed the contestants. It had been a tough and exciting game, and now, nearing the end, the competitors were locked in a gripping five-way tie. That is to say, they were all tied at ZERO, because throughout the course of the entire game, nobody had managed to answer even one single question correctly.

"First, we will have five normal questions, one to each of you in order," he explained. "This will, ideally, allow each of you one more fair chance to gain a point and take the lead. After that, we will have the exhilarating final question, worth a whopping _ten points_!"

"Sweet mercy," Tullece folded his arms and leaned forward on his podium. "Finally, we're gonna be done with this."

"It's about time, too," Selypa commented. "This chapter's been going downhill since about page eight."

"SILENCE!" Vegeta yelled. "QUESTIONS!" He produced an index card and read from it. "This first one goes to Nappa! Tell us," he asked. "What is the sum of Banana + 5, multiplied by chicken patties?"

"Uh," Nappa appeared more clueless than was characteristically normal for him. "What? I don't understand that! What's chicken?"

"If only you knew, Nappa, if only you knew," Vegeta licked his lips in hedonistic anticipation of ravenously devouring a McChicken sandwich later. "But apparently you don't, so..."

_BZZZT!_

"Wrong! The answer was, in fact, the _U.S.S Excelsior!_ Next question!" He moved on. "This one goes to King Vegeta!"

"All-right" The King made a 'bring it on' gesture. "Hit me with your best shot!"

"What is the surplus of the most radical of underachieved spots for invariationalized galactic dominatrix?"

"...Twelve?"

**_BZZZT!_**

"Oooh, so sorry! The correct answer was 'yellow polka-dot bikini!' Let's move on!"

He approached Tullece. "Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be, I guess."

"Okay then! Your question. What does marriage taste like?"

"Huh?"

"You heard me_, punk_."

"Yeah, I heard you, but... It doesn't make any sense! These questions are ridiculous! They have been for the whole game!"

"Well, look who's being a little crybaby!" King Vegeta taunted Tullece for the millionth time in the half-hour programming block. "Didjoo mess your diaper, widdle baby?" He proceeded to make funny faces at Tullece.

"You... " Tullece started to power up in his anger. "I've had it! Raaagh!" He generated and threw a ball of ki. It struck King Vegeta and exploded, knocking him across the stage through a wall, and TOTALLY ruining his mascara. "Now shut up!"

"OoOoh... nappy time..."

"Hmmmm..." Vegeta observed. "Eh, he'll be fine. Tullece, do you have an answer?"

"What? There IS no answer! The question is meaningless! Who's the idiot that writes these, for crying out loud?"

On the balcony, Goku nonchalantly twiddled his thumbs while whistling '_Makafushigi Adventure_.'

"I demand an answer! I am the Prince of all Saiyans!"

"Gah! Fine!" Exasperated, Tullece said, "Apples."

**_BZZZT!_**

"Oh! So sorry! The correct answer was 'Piccolo.'"

"Marriage... tastes like Piccolo?"

"That's what SHE said!"

"Aaah!" Tullece recoiled in horror at the rediscovery of King Vegeta next to him. "What the hell...?"

"I finished my nap!"

"I thought you were dead! That blast was strong enough to kill Ginyu!"

"Aha. Well, my friend, I survived! Not only because this is a gag chapter," the King boasted. "But I am far more durable than you all think."

"Really?" Goku commented enthusiastically.

"Indeed," King Vegeta continued. "In fact, contrary to popular belief, I was NOT killed by Freeza!"

"You don't say," Selypa made the mistake of involving herself in the discourse.

"Yes, I survived! In my cunning, I went on to infiltrate Freeza's empire, disguised as the one you all came to know as Zarbon!" He held up a picture. "Here is the photographic proof!"

"That's just a picture of Zarbon," Nappa observed. "With your head taped over his."

"Is not."

"Yes, it is," Tullece scorned. "You'd have to be a complete moron to fall for-"

"OH, DADDY!" Vegeta broke down in tears. "That was YOU on planet Namek?" He ran over and bear-hugged the King. "I'm so sorry! If I'd known it was you, I'd have never done those terrible things!" He openly sobbed, as the King comfortingly patted him on the back.

"There, there, son. Time heals all wounds," he consoled. "Even ones from enormous ki blasts through the torso." He backed up and grasped Vegeta by the shoulders. "It's in the past. Now, go on, and fulfill your duty! Make your green, sexy, stylish daddy proud!

Sniffling, Vegeta wiped away his remaining tears. "Right!" With a newfound sense of pride and responsibility only found in such situations in shonen manga but not really, he dramatically walked further down the line and faced the next contestant.

"The next question is for Broly!" Vegeta proclaimed. "Are you ready?"

"KAKARROT!"

"Then here we go." Vegeta read from a card. "What are the definite momentum solutions to the Dirac equation for massless electrons?"

Broly paused, and pondered the question for a moment. He scratched his head, and counted on his fingers for a few seconds, before an expression of epiphany came across his bulging, maddened face.

"Do you have the answer, Mr. Broly?"

He nodded.

"Let's hear it."

"KAKARROT!"

**_BZZZT!_**

"Oh! Close, so very close," Vegeta exclaimed. "But the answer was rhubarb pie!"

Broly grunted and snapped his fingers in frustration, releasing a shock wave of ki in the process which killed several more Namekian audience members.

"Aaaaaieeeeeee!"

"Oh, man," Tullece commented. "I thought the rest of us were having trouble with this game," he thumbed towards Broly. "But this guy's just plain hopeless."

Broly began gnawing on his tie.

"In _every_ sense."

"Oh, I wouldn't say our friend Broly is _completely_ beyond help," King Vegeta commented, deviously stroking his bearded chin.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, anyone can be trained to fit into society, if given the proper training." He leisurely walked over to the hulking Super Saiyan. "In fact, I believe that, given an ample amount of time and resources," He stretched up to place a hand on Broly's shoulder. "I can turn our friend Broly, here, into a perfect gentleman!"

"You're nuts."

"Indeed I am."

"It's impossible."

"Care to back that up?"

Tullece raised an eyebrow. "What are you proposing?"

"A wager!" King Vegeta held one finger up in the air. "Give me one month! If I have not succeeded, you shall have, on me, the finest clothing this side of the Kaioshin realm!"

Tullece smiled. "Fine by me," he said. "And if you can, I'll give you a seed for the Tree of Might, which can grant you more power than you could ever imag-!"

"No. I want a Pikachu plushie."

"...Okay fine, I'll toss in a Pikachu plushie."

"Then we have a bet!"

"Ahem," Vegeta interrupted. "I hate to halt the beating, nay, _grotesque mutilation_ of this dead horse, but we have a show to finish."

"Oh, sorry," Tullece waved. "Go ahead."

"Well, then," Vegeta moved to the last podium. "It all comes down to you, Miss Selypa! Will you manage to score a point and take the lead, or will we need to continue on to the bonus round?"

"Here's hoping," she said. "Sock it to me."

"Hey, baby! I'm the one you want!"

"Not like that, you idiot!" Selypa angrily scolded King Vegeta, before turning back to Vegeta Jr. "Ask the damn question already!"

"Very well," Vegeta read. "When you find yourself in danger, when you're threatened by a stranger, when it looks like you will take a licking, who will drink his super sauce and throw the bad guys for a loss and bring them in alive and kicking?"

"Oh, I know this," Selypa said, smiling. "We watch this show in Hell all the time, along with _Cosby_ reruns." The folded her arms confidently. "The answer is 'Super Chicken."

_**BZZZZZT!**_

_"WHAT?"_ Selypa couldn't contain her disbelief. "How could that be wrong? That's impossible! I KNOW it's right!"

"I'm sorry," Vegeta said. "But the correct answer was 'Donny Osmond'."

"...Who?"

"Well, Vegeta!" Goku exclaimed from his position on the balcony. "It looks like the outcome of the entire game has come down to the final question!"

"That's right, Kakarrot," Vegeta concurred. "Alright, contestants, are you ready?"

The contestants responded with various remarks of "Yeah," "You bet," and "KAKARROT."

"This question will be harder than any of those previous, and, as you all know, will be worth a whopping ten points," he explained. "First to answer the question correctly will take the game! Lady, gentlemen, Broly... hands on dinger-button-thingies."

_**DING**_!

"No, don't press them yet."

"Oh," Nappa replied sheepishly. "Sorry."

"Now, here is your question, which was NOT written by Kakarrot." Vegeta prepared himself and produced the card, and a quick, _Millionare-_esque burst of music played to heighten the tension. He produced the question.

"According to my scouter, WHO had a... power level of... over... nine... thousand...?"

"Oh, wow," Goku said in disbelief.

"I REALLY thought we weren't going to use this joke," Vegeta commented.

"Ooooh, _shoot_, I know this one," Nappa pondered, rapidly tapping his head as he tried to remember.

_**DING**_!

"Tullece!"

"Uh," he said, unsure of himself. "Was it... Piccolo?"

_**BZZZT**_!

"Incorrect!"

"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon," Nappa continued wracking his brain. "What was it..."

_**DING**_!

"Selypa!"

"Um, was it Bardock?" She asked. "I'm pretty sure he broke ten thousand..."

_**BZZZT**_!

"Incorrect!"

Suddenly, Nappa snapped his fingers in realization. "I've got it!" He reached for his buzzer button...

_**DING**_!

...But was beaten to it.

"Aaaaaand," Vegeta proclaimed and pointed. "Broly!"

Having buzzed a split second before Nappa, the hulking Super Saiyan stood up straight. He slowly and calmly adjusted his tie and shirt collar. Then, he grasped the left and right top sides of the podium with each of his hands, and carefully and steadily leaned down to position his face mere inches away from the microphone.

Into which he proceeded to scream the answer at the top of his lungs, and the sheer force of the resulting soundwaves messily killed the remaining audience members.

_"KAKARROOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!"_

**_DING DING DING!_**

"CORRECT!" Vegeta exclaimed. "The correct answer was Kakarrot!"

"Oh," King Vegeta said. "Phew! I was gonna say Kenshiro!"

"He's from _Hokuto no Ken_, you moron!" Selypa yelled. "This is DragonBall!"

"Congratulations, Broly!" Goku announced. "You win our fabulous grand prize, a lifetime supply of E-Z Mac!" A curtain rose, revealing a rotating platform with a plethora of boxes of the delicious, cheesy, noodly treat.

"THAT," exclaimed Nappa. "Was the DragonBalls-surpassing grand prize?"

"I**_ know_**!" Goku exclaimed. "Isn't it great?"

"Well," Selypa remarked. "This was an even bigger waste of time than I thought. But at least I'm back to life, so maybe I'll go shopping." She glanced over at King Vegeta. "I wonder where can I find those shoes..."

"...Can I come along?" Nappa asked.

"Sure. We'll buy you a shirt." The two walked off the stage and exited the studio.

"Say, uh, no hard feelings about the ki blast earlier, right?" Tullece apologetically addressed the King. "It kinda destroyed most of your, uh, outfit, too."

"Pish posh, not a word," he replied, waving it off dismissively. "It is easily replaced."

"Yeah, I guess," he said, then grimaced. "But you sure could have picked a better day to not wear any underwe-_aaah!_"

Tullece was cut short as he was grabbed by the leg by Broly, who proceeded to swing him around through the air in celebration as he charged away at full speed.

"Aaaaaaaugh!"

"KAKARROT!"

"No, Broly, NO! Bad!" King Vegeta scolded the Super Saiyan, as he gave chase. "Down! Put him down! Goodness, I've got my work cut out for me, don't I?"

"Hey, Vegeta?" Goku spoke up. "We wished these guys back to life just for the show, right? Should we be just letting them leave like this?"

"As opposed to what? Killing an opportunity for priceless cameos later?"

"Guess you're right."

"Well, ladies and gentlemen, that's it! Another exciting game of... Oh." Vegeta then noticed they had no living audience members left. "Oh, well."

"For those of you watching at home," Goku announced. "Stay tuned for an exciting episode of _'Saiyan Mary-Sue SMACKDOWN_,' when Saiyan Videl takes on Vegeta's sister!"

"Good night, everyone!"

_**CHHHHT!**_

The end...?


	8. Some 'Splaining To Do

******DRAGON BALL GT: REVISED**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Eight - "_Some 'Splaining To Do_"

It was a glorious, beautiful day. The sun was shining, the sky was cloud-free, and the flowers were blooming all across the rolling hills. Birds chirped cheerfully as they lightly floated along on a cool, gentle breeze. Add the pristine, shimmering coat of morning dew on the ground, and the landscape was absolutely majestic.

But of course, such was typical for Heaven.

More specifically, this was the territory of the Grand Kaio: the small, otherworldly sphere which served as both this particular god's home and training grounds for the Universe's strongest, noblest, and deadest warriors. Situated square on the planetoid's equator was the mighty hall of Grand Kaio himself, where countless warriors congregated to train and compete for his eye.

But none of the rivalries between warriors could hope to compare to the one at work in their midst, between two of their masters. About two stories upwards, on a balcony overlooking a densely crowded training area, stood two certain squat, bespectacled, sacred beings. One was blue, and wore a pair of stylish round sunglasses. The other was purple, the shorter of the two, and sported a classy-looking monocle. They were unmistakably the Kaio of the North, more commonly known as "King Kai" to his students, and the Kaio of the West. And as was to be expected, the two were arguing bitterly.

"Geez, cut me some slack!" North Kaio defensively whined.

"I think I've cut you plenty of slack already!" West Kaio exclaimed. "For some fifteen years now, out of the kindness of my heart, I've been letting you stay on my planet! And for what in return? Nowadays you do nothing but lounge around, eat my food, dirty my car, and distract my students!"

One of those students, the tall, green, spotted, robe-and-turban-clad West Galaxy native named Paikuhan, followed the two.

"Please, masters, don't speak so harshly. I'm sure you ca-"

"You monocled nincompoop!" They blatantly ignored him and continued bickering. "It's not my fault they still haven't gotten me a new planet yet! I don't have anywhere else to go!"

"You'll just have to _find_ somewhere else, then!" West stamped his pudgy little foot. "I'm going to talk to Grand Kaio again about this, and I'm not leaving this sphere 'till he gets you out of my hair for good!"

"We don't have hair!"

"Whatever! Let's just find him and get this settled!"

Paikuhan let out a sigh of annoyed defeat and flew off to train on his own. The two Kaios kept on arguing as they searched for their boss among the crowd of warriors.

"You know," West continued, "He might make it more of a priority if you actually did something around here to earn your keep!"

"What? Why you..." North fumed. "I do plenty! I still manage to keep watch over my galaxy, even from such a crappy vantage point like yours!"

"_Psssh_," West Kaio dismissed his protest, as the two worked their way through a dense crowd of fighters. "You say you're watching, but you're just napping. Plus," He noticed a short-statured fighter just in time to avoid running him over, before moving on. "You haven't taken on a new student in years."

"Hey, it's not my fault Goku went back to life," North Kaio continued, also dodging the shorty. "Nobody so far has come close to filling his shoes."

"Huh?" The pint-sized individual took notice of them before being lost in the crowd again.

"Then you've just gotten too picky," West scolded. "There's plenty of fighters chock full of potential from your galaxy dying and ending up here all the time." He stopped and turned around. "But you can't expect them all to be Super Saiyans."

"Humph!" North Kaio folded his arms. "Pardon me for favoring quality over quantity!"

"Apply that to your diets, and the both of you'd be a lot better off!"

"Waagh!" Both chubby deities jumped at the sudden intrusion into their conversation. Standing behind them was an older, peach-skinned Kaio, sporting full-rimmed sunglasses and a positively gnarly amount of facial hair. He was none other than the Grand Kaio himself.

"Ah! Venerable master!" The two each gave a quick bow.

"Heya, Northy, Westy," he greeted them affectionately. "A little birdie told me you two were looking for me."

"A birdie?" West turned around to see a feathered avian-humanoid being from the South Galaxy, who haplessly shrugged.

"Well actually, I meant Paikuhan." Grand thumbed behind him. "So what's up?"

"Yes, well, ahem," West began, clearing his throat. "It's about our friend 'Northy' here."

Grand gave him a glance. "Okay?"

"Well as you know, his planet was destroyed some time ago, in the same incident that got his pathetic butt killed."

"Hey!"

"Anyway, out of the kindness of my ever-charitable heart..."

"Pffft!"

Kick.

"Ow!"

"...I have allowed him to stay and conduct his business on my own planetoid. But it's been a good amount of time since then, and there are no signs of him leaving..."

"Ah, I getcha," Grand concluded. "You want him to get a new home."

"Yes!" West proclaimed. "For the love of... um... _**us**_, yes!"

"Well," Grand said. "I'll talk to Kaioshin next time he swings by. I'm sure he can work something out..."

He suddenly paused, to the confusion of the lesser Kaios.

"What's wrong?" North asked.

Grand Kaio pointed into the crowd. "Who's that?"

They turned to look and tracked his indication to the pipsqueak fighter **whom** they had passed just a few moments earlier, now more visible due to the crowd thinning a bit. Now that they looked closer, they saw it was a young boy. He was happily occupying himself by doing some stretches and throwing an occasional punch into the air.

"Dunno," West said. "Looks like the poor kid died young, though."

"Is your monocle cracked or something, you purple ignoramus? Look again," North Kaio rebuked him. "He's got no halo. He's alive."

"Well, that's weird," Grand Kaio muttered. "Hey! You!" He waved and got the youngster's attention. "Come over here!"

The kid flashed a grin and bounced over to them.

"Heya!" He exclaimed in an unexpectedly familiar tone, looking upwards as he stood in the middle of the three. "How are ya, old-timer?" He gave a quick bow to the top dog, and then noticed the other two. "How's it going, King Kai?" This left all parties rather befuddled.

"Hmm?" North Kaio scratched his temple. "Have we met?"

"Now that you mention it," Grand Kaio cocked his head slightly. "The kid does look kind of familiar..."

"Huh?" The boy took a sour expression. "Geez, what's with everybody today? You'd think..." He paused, and then looked himself over as if having to re-familiarize himself with his own body. "Oh yeah, that's right..."

Suddenly, Paikuhan.

"Masters!" He called, as he floated downward and landed next to them. He noticed Grand Kaio and bowed slightly. "Ah," he said. "I see they found you, sir."

"Paikuhan, m'boy," Grand Kaio pointed downwards to the kid. "Have you seen this little guy around before?"

The tall, green-skinned warrior glanced down, and his eyes widened in surprise. The kid waved enthusiastically.

"Hi, Paikuhan!"

"...Son Goku?"

The gods' jaws dropped in unison.

"Well," Goku responded. "It's about time someone recognized me!"

"...Goku?" North Kaio adjusted his glasses. "It… it really is you, isn't it?"

"Yup!" Goku put his hands on his hips. "In the flesh!"

"I'll be darned," Grand Kaio declared. "It _is_ li'l Goku, huh?"

"You didn't recognize him, sir?" Paikuhan inquired. "Something seems to have happened to him, but how many other people in the Universe have hair like _THAT_?"

"Well, actually..." Goku began counting on his fingers.

"What happened to you, kid?" West Kaio inquired.

"Ah, it's a long story..."

"Okay then," Grand Kaio abruptly noticed. "I'll leave you guys to your business, now!" Clearly wanting to avoid sticking around for a story at all costs, he was off and away like some sort of ninja.

"Wait!" West Kaio gave chase. "What about the planet for North? You never..."

"Wow," Goku commented. "I didn't know the old-timer knew Instant Movement, too!" He turned to Paikuhan. "Hey, now that I've found you, I _did_ hop over here to test my power, y'know. So let's spar!"

"Really?" Paikuhan replied, grinning. "Sure you can still handle me with that body, small-fry?"

Goku returned the grin and took his fighting stance. "Won't know until I give it a shot!"

"Well then," Paikuhan replied, taking a stance of his own. "I'll oblige you!"

The two simultaneously zipped up into the air, a burst of wind expanding outward in their wake. North Kaio tracked their movements, watching how his student adjusted to his new child-sized form. Quite well, apparently, as Goku was deftly keeping up with Paikuhan just as easily as ever — perhaps easier, in fact, as Goku's smaller frame apparently allowed him to maneuver around and dodge more effectively.

"So, Goku," he called up. "What happened to you, anyway?"

"Oh, well," Goku responded as he parried a punch, using the momentum to spin himself and move backwards to avoid another. "I told you about that guy Pilaf, right?"

"The short, trollish one you stopped from conquering Earth a couple times?"

"Yeah, with the funny hat." Goku threw a spinning kick, which Paikuhan blocked. "Well, he showed up again the other day after like, what? Twenty years?" Continuing to adapt to his size, he leapfrogged himself over Paikuhan's head. "And he somehow managed t' almost get himself a wish, right under our noses!" Paikuhan retaliated by flipping backwards to deliver an arcing kick, which Goku managed to parry.

Kaio snorted in amusement. "Really?"

"Yeah," Goku said, giggling. "He snuck right on up to Kami's Temple while we were all at the Tenkaichi Budokai... Gotcha!" Goku flipped his leg downward, landing a kick square on Paikuhan's backside.

"Ow!" Paikuhan righted himself and rubbed the point of impact. "You're damn near impossible to hit like this." He grinned. "Well, I'll just have to hit faster and harder then." He took off his turban and robe and casually tossed them away. They landed on the ground beside several other by-standing warriors with a loud _thud_, heavy from the training weights embedded in them. "Graaaah!" Paikuhan roared, and a sizable ki aura burst into view around him. He glared daringly at Goku.

"Come on," he taunted, making a waving gesture. "You turn it up, too."

"Oh, boy," King Kai remarked to himself. "Here they go..."

Goku flashed a toothy grin. "Sure thing!"

He arced his arms down at his sides and started growling. His Gi began to flap and ripple as if in the wind, as he channeled and spiked his ki. His hair rose on end and waved, and he started to faintly glow, indicative of the massive burst of power that was imminent. "Hyaaah!" With a shout, Goku was embodied in a flash of light, as a bright golden aura surrounded him, repeatedly _swoosh-_ing as his power pulsated. His hair, also golden, stood on end, and his eyes were colored emerald green. He'd transformed into a Super Saiyan.

"Whooo," Kaio exclaimed. "I'll never get used to seeing that."

Paikuhan blitzed Goku at speeds far greater than before, throwing a ki-charged punch. Goku crossed his arms in front of his face and blocked it. The mountain-shattering force of the impact sent out a shockwave of air that knocked a few of the weaker bystanders off their feet. Kaio noticed and called up to the combatants.

"Hey, you two, if you're going to use that much power, then do it farther away!"

"But then you won't be able t' hear me..." Goku whined as he dodged another punch, the air and ki displacement from which was enough to move his own aura and hair.

"I'll follow you," Kaio assured him. "Just go!"

Kaio kept up as the two brought their fight higher into the air and away from the more densely populated area of the training complex. Goku continued the story.

"So anyway, I got there just as he was about to make his wish. I'm sure he was gonna wish to rule the world, or at least get his youth back or something," he continued, exchanging a quick flurry of blows. "But then I distracted him when I showed up and fought him and his friends." He launched a jabbing kick, which Paikuhan blocked. "He got angry and said I was easier to handle as a kid."

"Let me guess," Kaio remarked, amused. "He slipped up and expressed that in the form of a wish."

"Yep!" Goku confirmed, blocking a punch with his knee. "And here I am!"

"I see," Kaio remarked. "Well, that's nothing _**short**_ of hilarious!"

Both Goku and Paikuhan flinched at the awful pun. But unfortunately for Paikuhan, Goku was far more accustomed to them and thus was delayed for only a split second less. This tiny difference allowed him ample opportunity to land a solid punch to the larger warrior's jaw.

"Ooof!" Paikuhan grunted as he went flying off over the small horizon, and Goku chuckled in satisfaction.

"But Goku," Kaio inquired, "why didn't you just use the second wish to change yourself back?"

"Huh?" Goku relaxed, powering back down to normal state. He cocked his head like a bewildered puppy. "Second wish?"

"You dummy," Kaio remarked. "Don't you still get two wishes from your dragon?"

"Oh, that's another weird part," Goku said. "It wasn't Shenlong."

"It wasn't?"

"Nope. This dragon KINDA looked like him, but..." He folded his arms and frowned a bit as he thought. "He was a LOT bigger, and colored red. He looked a lot more spikey and nasty."

"A large, red dragon?" Kaio rubbed his temples, as if trying to recall something out of his memory.

"And the Dragon Balls were weird, too. They were a little bigger," Goku continued, demonstrating the size with his hands. "And they had black stars in 'em."

"Black... stars...?"

Kaio continued staring into space for a few moments, trying to put together the pieces. Paikuhan returned to the immediate area, having been knocked quite some distance by Goku's punch. He powered down as well, then noticed Kaio's expression.

"What's wrong with him?"

"I dunno..." Goku remarked. "Hey King Kai, you okay?"

"Black stars..."

Suddenly, an expression of utter horror came across North Kaio's face, as he began to flop-sweat. "B-b-black stars! Black stars! OH NO! Oh no..." He began to violently fidget in place, grasping his head in shock and worry. "Oh no, oh no, oh no... this is terrible..."

"Huh? What? Terrible? Who? Why? When? How?" Goku was greatly confused.

Fittingly, West Kaio chose that moment to return to the group, looking dejected. He floated up next to North Kaio.

"Well, I managed to catch him and made him promise to actually talk to Kaioshin, but ..." He noticed North Kaio's ensuing freak-out session. "What are you seizuring about?"

"Listen, Goku!" North Kai suddenly exclaimed. "You need to go back to Earth and gather Piccolo and the others right away!"

"Huh?" Goku was even more confused. "What? Why?"

"What's going on, Northy?" West Kaio asked again.

"The Black Star Dragon Balls!" North Kaio exclaimed. "They've been found and used again! On Earth!"

West Kaio raised an eyebrow. "The what? What are you jabbering about?"

"You idiot!" North began waving his arms frantically. "Namek was in YOUR galaxy! Don't you remember that incident? All the destruction and horror and chaos..."

"...Namek... Black Stars...?"

"..."

"...AAAAH!" West Kaio's monocle popped off from his face as he recoiled in shock. "Oh, no! You're kidding me!"

"No!"

"I thought they were destroyed!"

"No!"

"Now they've been used on Earth... In your North Galaxy?"

"Yes!"

"Which means..." West paused to contemplate for a moment, his brow laden with sweat and worry. "They're YOUR problem now!" He turned tail and rocketed away. "Let's go, Paikuhan!"

"Uh, yes sir," Paikuhan began to follow but turned back as he did so. "Best of luck, Goku."

"Thanks, Paikuhan. Seeya," Goku waved as they flew off. He then turned back to Kaio. "So what's-_oof!"_

Kaio grasped Goku firmly by the front of his Gi and got right in his face. "Now, Goku! Go gather the others! I'll get back in touch with you once you do! This is urgent!"

"Urgent?" Goku was worried as well, now. "But why? What's wrong?"

"It's those Dragon Balls, Goku!" He exclaimed. "They're deadly! Since they've been used..." His face took a solemn expression as he let go of Goku. "Planet Earth itself is in grave danger! And unless we do something about them soon, the rest of the mortal universe is no more safe! Do you understand?"

Goku paused for a second, soaking in the information, before nodding determinedly. "Gotcha, King Kai." He held up two fingers to his forehead. "I'll get everyone together in a jiffy." He vanished, teleporting himself back to Earth.

Kaio stood there a moment longer, rubbing his temple as he thought to himself.

"I only hope we can still do something..."

* * *

_Ubertuna, Tiger, or Brontosaurus...?_

In her kitchen, ChiChi casually flipped through her recipe book, scanning for an appropriate dish. It had been a long time since they'd had a big group over to their home at Mt. Paozu like this, and she'd have to come up with something substantial in order to provide dinner for everyone. She bobbed her head to the side and began counting on her fingers.

"Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Goten, Pan, Trunks, Bra..."

That made... _seven _Saiyans to feed. Among plenty of other guests.

"Better make that TWO Ubertunas... No, maybe three, just t' be safe."

She opened up the fridge, grabbed a ready glass of lemonade, and walked out of the kitchen into the living room, where several of the guests were already present. Goten had been there for a few hours already, and Pan had flown ahead on her own and arrived not too long ago. Her parents, Gohan and Videl, had taken the skycar because of baby Gosan and so were moving a bit slower, but were due any time now. Pan was idly chatting with Marron, who had arrived a few minutes ago with her parents, Kuririn and Eighteen. Along with them came Master Roshi, whom Eighteen was keeping a close eye on, as usual. Bulma and family were on their way, as was Piccolo.

Oob, Goku's apprentice, had been there for quite some time already, and after helping Goten move some furniture around earlier, he was lounging on the couch, keeping mainly to himself. ChiChi walked over, got his attention, and handed him the drink.

"Here ya go, dear," she said, smiling warmly.

"Oh." Oob accepted it. "Thank you." He took a sip.

"You're welcome," she cheerfully responded. Ever since some time after Goku had taken him on as a student, Oob tended to spend just as much time around the "Son Family Ranch" as he did his own island village. Oob was such a nice boy, and great to have around. He was always so polite and helpful and well-mannered, a nice contrast to the rest of the males who typically hung around the place. Since Gohan and Goten had both moved away from home, having Oob living with her and Goku so often was like having a new substitute son.

Speaking of which, Gohan and company had just arrived and walked in. Everyone present waved and gave them a friendly "hello" of some form or another, and ChiChi bounded over to greet them. Gohan had been first through the door, and with a, "Hello, sweetie," she stretched upwards to give him a peck on the cheek, much to his own embarrassment and his wife's amusement. Videl was right behind him, holding Gosan. The toddler noticed ChiChi and stretched out his arms in glee.

"Ga'ma!" He squeaked.

"Ooh, hello there, handsome!" ChiChi reached back out for him. Knowing when to take a hint, Videl handed him over.

"Here, take the little pooper," she said. "There's a reason we were late, you know."

"I couldn't imagine," ChiChi responded, playfully poking the giggling tyke on his nose, before turning back to Gohan. "You're just in time. Would you come down and help me get some fish?"

"Sure," Gohan said, taking off his coat while glancing around. "Is Dad here?" He tossed it across the room onto Pan's unsuspecting head.

"Oomph! Hey!"

"No, not yet," ChiChi replied, walking towards the door to the basement. "I haven't heard from 'im since the Budokai, actually."

This caught Kuririn's attention. "Really? That was four days ago!"

"Oh, you know how he is," ChiChi replied nonchalantly, waving it off. "You never know when he's gonna up an' disappear for a few days to go training or something..." She opened the door and began walking down. "Probably went off to eat... He won a whole lotta Zeni for placing second, so I ain't complaining..." She and Gohan went down the stairs a moment too late to see Pan and Roshi exchange worried glances.

"Heh," Kuririn commented. "That's Goku, alright."

"I thought Goku was the one who suddenly wanted us all to get together tonight," Eighteen pondered. "If he didn't tell ChiChi, who did?"

"Pan did," Goten answered.

"Did he tell you what it was about?" Kuririn asked her.

"U-uh," Pan stuttered. "No."

"Did he look like something was wrong?"

"Wrong?" She waved dismissively. "No, nothing wrong! Everything's A-okay..."

Videl put her hands on her hips and walked over to face her daughter. "I think there's something you and Roshi aren't telling us, Pan."

"Me?" Roshi protested. "Whatever would make you think..."

"I'm a police captain, remember?" She said, leaning down and menacingly glaring him in the face. "I'm trained to be able to TELL these things." She turned back to Pan. "Spit it out."

"Well," Pan started. "You see, Grandpa is..."

The front door opened.

"...Here?"

All eyes turned to see, in fact, Piccolo walk through the door. He had a solemn, concerned expression on his face, but still managed a friendly nod to everyone.

"Hello."

"Oh! Piccolo, there you are," Gohan just reached the top of the basement stairs, carrying a huge fish over one shoulder. "Hey, do you have any idea what this is abo-"

Suddenly, a small figure pushed his way out in front of Piccolo and observed the crowd before him.

"Oh wow, everyone's really here!"

Several jaws dropped, as the young boy who was apparently Goku sniffed the air. "Oooh, is that ChiChi's mozzarella macaroni I smell baking?" He ran to poke his head into the kitchen, hopping over the couch in the process. "Yeah, sure is!" He turned around to face everyone and waved energetically.

"Hi, guys!"

Gohan was first to respond. "...Dad?"

"Oh," ChiChi's voice resonated from down below. "Is your father here?" In everyone's stupefied silence, her footsteps could clearly be heard coming up the stairs.

"Um, Mom," Gohan warned. "Wait a sec, you might wanna..."

But he couldn't deter her now more than any of them ever could, and she reached the top of the stairs, forcing him out of her way. "Goku! You're..."

She noticed him and paused. He waved meekly.

"Hiya, ChiChi."

She stood there, staring for a moment, as Gosan cooed and looked around curiously. Suddenly, her eyes rolled back into her head, and she began to tip over backwards into the open stairway. Gohan zipped back and caught her and Gosan, the former having soundly fainted and the latter giggling like mad.

A few moments later, ChiChi was slumped on the couch, with Goku sitting next to her and everyone else gathered around.

"Oh boy," he said. "I hoped she'd take that better..."

"Well, geez, Goku," Kuririn said. "It's not exactly an easy thing to take. I'm sure you've gotten this several times already, but... what happened to you?"

"It had something to do with the earthquake, right?" Eighteen asked.

"It's a long story," Piccolo put in. "Once we're all here, I'll fill everyone in."

"Trunks just texted me," Goten spoke up, tapping a reply into his cell phone. "He says they're approaching the mountain to land now."

"So," Videl began again, addressing her daughter and Roshi. "You two knew about this little detail?"

"Um, yeah," Pan admitted. "We met up with Grandpa on Tuesday."

"Tuesday," Gohan pondered. "That's the afternoon you went out with Salza, right?"

"His name's Selzer!" Pan protested. "But yeah. I stopped a bank robbery, and-"

"You what?" Gohan was surprised. "I didn't know that."

"I saw it," the ordinarily shy Marron informed them. "It was all over the news."

"Yes," Oob piped up. "I saw it too."

Gohan cocked his head. "I oughta watch more TV."

"Anyway," Roshi continued. "I met Pan there after the whole ordeal, and then Goku showed up too. Pan didn't recognize him at first, but I did, since I knew him back when he was a youngster... the first time."

"The news people must've started talkin' about something else before I got there," Goku mused.

"By the way, Master Goku?"

"Yeah, Oob?"

The student pointed inquisitively. "Has this affected your power any?"

"Haha, yeah, that's a good question," Kuririn joked. "Maybe now I'll be a match for you again, huh?"

"Keep dreaming, buddy!" Goku retorted. "I zipped over to the Other World to test my power," he flexed while talking. "I ain't tried revving up all the way yet, but as far as I can tell I've still got just about all of it!"

"Oh, well," Kuririn sighed with a smile. "I still have Yamcha to beat on, at least."

Suddenly, the door opened, indicating the Brief family's arrival. All turned to see Vegeta storm in and make a beeline for Goku.

"Hey, Vegeta, guess what I-"

He didn't get to finish, as Vegeta interrupted him with a solid, aggravated punch square to the head. Goku tumbled backwards into the kitchen from the impact, crashed headfirst into and through the back door, and skidded face-first to a halt on the ground several yards away outside. Vegeta pointed in his direction and yelled.

"THAT was for abandoning our fight, Kakarrot!"

"Um, Vegeta," Kuririn said to the irritated Saiyan. "Didn't you notice something... different about Goku?"

"No, I was too busy driving my fist into his face! Why?"

"Yowowowowow..." Goku came stumbling back into the room, rubbing his jaw. "Boy, Vegeta, I wasn't expectin' that..." He contorted his face as he wiggled his tongue around. "I think you loosened a tooth..."

His timing was perfect, as the rest of the Briefs chose that moment to walk in the door and were able to join Vegeta in his shock.

"Son?" Bulma was flabbergasted, as she walked towards him, knelt down, and looked him over. "Oh my god, what in the world happened?"

"Holy cow," Bra exclaimed, and turned to Pan. "Hey Pan, your grandpa's younger than you now? How's that feel?"

"Very confusing and disturbing."

Trunks walked forward and joined his mother in inspecting the kiddie-sized Saiyan. "Wow, this is weird."

"K... Kakarrot...?"

"I knew it," Bulma stated. "It _was_ a wish. I thought it was from the sky darkening, but then the earthquake threw me off." She stood back up and folded her arms in confusion. "This... but why wish to turn you in to a kid? Care to explain?"

"Well, since we're all here now," Piccolo spoke. "I can tell what happened."

"Okay, then," Goku said. "Everyone gather 'round, it's time for a story from Uncle Piccolo!"

"Please don't say that..."

"Hee hee! Oh, careful, you guys, don't sit on ChiChi..."

* * *

"...Found him in the bathroom, where we first saw him in his present state." Piccolo concluded the story. "While that in itself is rather trivial, the fact that it meant the Black Star Dragon Balls had been used was confirmed."

"Yeah, I don't mind being a kid again for a while," Goku commented, while dabbing the semi-conscious ChiChi's head with a damp cloth. "It'll be kinda fun. I'm a lot harder to hit, now." He looked at Vegeta. "Hey, you okay?"

"Just... don't talk to me," he responded, rubbing his head in pained annoyance. "I'm having enough trouble taking this in as it is."

"So, the 'Black Star Dragon Balls,' huh?" Bulma pondered, sitting on the couch opposite of Goku from ChiChi. "Weird."

"So what is the deal with them?" Kuririn asked. "You just said they were dangerous, maybe even threatening to the Earth. How exactly is that?"

"Yeah, you know," Goten said. "Aside from the worldwide quakes and all."

"Oh yeah, those."

"It's... a rather long story," Piccolo said, wracking his brain. "I'm unsure as to some of the details, but I should be able to adequately..."

"Oh! That reminds me!" Goku suddenly exclaimed, pounding his fist into his hand. "I'll be right back, guys!" He jumped off the couch, put two fingers of one hand to his forehead, and teleported away.

"So..." A moment later, Bra broke the awkward, confused silence, and indicated ChiChi. "How's she doing?"

"Better now, I think," replied Gohan, who had taken over tending to her. He spoke to her. "Mom? Mom, are you okay?"

"Hrrrnnnnn... whuzgoinnonnn...?" ChiChi groggily began to fully wake. Suddenly, she bolted straight upwards, startling everyone. "Goku! How dare you..." She looked around, confused. "Uh, where'd he go?"

"He teleported away for something," Oob informed her. "I don't know what, but–"

At that moment, Goku and another figure materialized right in front of her. She yelped and jumped backwards.

"I'll never get used to that..." she panted.

"Oh, ChiChi! Sorry, hon," Goku said apologetically, then helped her up. "Are you okay, by the way?"

She stared wide-eyed for a moment, before shaking her head and sighing. "As okay as I can be, I guess," she lamented as she dusted herself off. She then gazed at Goku sadly. "What happened to you?"

"Boy, have I been getting that question a LOT toda – Ow!"

With a light kick to the shin, Eighteen gave him a look that said, 'Shut up.' Goku paused for a moment, stumped, before realizing what she meant. ChiChi was obviously deeply upset. Goku took a more soft and comforting tone. "Sorry, Chi. Piccolo already just told the story t' everyone, so I'll fill ya in myself in a bit, okay?"

"Okay," she remarked, rubbing her head, before glancing at the newest guest. It was a short, stout, blue-skinned humanoid creature with antennae, dressed in robes and sunglasses, who was looking around the place curiously. "Who's this?"

"Oh yeah," Goku trotted over, and slapped the newcomer's back. "Guys, I'd like those of you who haven't died and met him at some point already to meet my good friend King Kai!"

"Ow!" King Kai scolded. "Geez, Goku, will you be careful? You're a lot stronger than I am, remember?" He pointed accusingly. "What's the big idea suddenly showing up and teleporting me here? I _am_ a Kaio; I'm not supposed to just be hopping down and around on planets all willy-nilly without some good reason, you know!"

"But you said you were gonna tell the story..."

"I meant by telepathy, like I normally do!" He continued yelling at his student. "What's with that casual tone, anyway? Show me some respect, for crying out loud!"

"But this is how I always talk to ya..."

"So WHO is he again?" Pan asked.

"Um, Pan, this is the North Kaio," Gohan informed her. "He's a god who watches over our entire galaxy from the Other World."

"Oh," ChiChi responded meekly. "Guess I better put on some tea, then." She scurried into the kitchen.

"A god, huh?" Pan remarked, sizing him up. "He doesn't seem like much..."

"What?" King Kai was notably annoyed. "Why you little – who do you think you are?"

"Um, if everyone doesn't mind," Piccolo cut in. "We've got a great deal to discuss and not a lot of time to do so."

"Hmph," King Kai snorted. "Yes, I agree."

"Well, first of all," Bulma began. "We need to know more about these Black Star Dragon Balls. Where'd they come from? How are they different from Shenlong's set?" She pointed a finger upwards. "And if they've been stored up in the palace this whole time, why has my Dragon Radar never detected them?"

"All good questions," Piccolo responded. "And they will be answered. There is, actually, quite a story behind the Black Stars. Like I said earlier, I do not know the full details, but I know at least enough so that we can all realize what we're dealing with."

"Really, Piccolo?" King Kai commented. "I'd thought Kami had retained no memory of it."

"True, he certainly didn't," Piccolo remarked, before smirking. "But _Nail_ did. He and Moori were the only ones whom the Great Elder entrusted with that knowledge. Nail was wise in wanting to merge with me, in order to preserve it."

"Interesting," Kaio noted. "We Kaio had a habit of watching Namek, particularly observing a certain ceremony of theirs each year, so we actually witnessed most of what happened."

"Wow!" Goku was getting excited. "Come on, come on, tell us!"

Vegeta, who had been being his usual grumpy self off on the other side of the room, plopped himself down on the couch and folded his arms. "That's right. Get on with it." Bulma situated herself closer next to him and whipped out a notepad. "Shoot."

"It all happened back on planet Namek, about... almost six hundred years ago, now," King Kai began to narrate. "Before the horrible cataclysm which wrecked it, Namek was a thriving planet, bustling with commerce and culture. There were several great cities and spaceports where this happened, but most of the planet was a veritable paradise, covered with crystal-clear water and majestic forests full of Ajissa trees.

"Politically, there was a bit more to it back in those days than what you guys witnessed when you visited, though it wasn't _too_ terribly complicated. The simplified system you saw was each village having its own Elder in charge, with one Great Elder mandating things to them. But back in those days, before the disaster, in addition to all the civilian merchants and farmers, there were three separate clans, each with their own head elder cooperating in a balanced triumvirate of influence.

"First off, there was the Seer Clan. They were the diplomats and lawmakers. They oversaw business both on Namek itself and its relationships with other worlds. They were wise and amicable, and Namek was in good standing with many races thanks to them." Kaio gave Piccolo a glance and a nod, deferring to him.

"Even such peaceful worlds as Namek have their dangers and problems every now and then," Piccolo continued. "So there was need of those whose duty it was to keep the peace. This was the Warrior Clan. They were born and bred to be amazingly powerful, so as to defend Namek against anything or anyone who might threaten her beloved peace. Before I merged with him, Nail was the one and only _true_ Namekian Warrior alive, strong enough and worthy to be a member of this group."

ChiChi then emerged from the kitchen with a tray of cups and a pot of piping hot tea and began passing it out. Goku eagerly snatched up a cup and, as usual, tried to drink it too soon and burnt his tongue. Ignoring his typical subsequent whining, ChiChi simply continued around to serve it to the other guests.

"Last, but certainly not least," Kaio picked back up, as he accepted a cup and gave the contents a curious sniff. "Was a clan that was very central to Namekian culture, but small and mostly kept a mystery from the outside population. They were called the Dragon Clan. To the general public, they were known simply as a diverse and loose group of artists, philosophers, and religious practitioners. Which they were, but that was primarily a front. Their real purpose was –"

"Dragon Balls!" Goku exclaimed, proud of himself for figuring out the obvious.

"You got it," Kaio affirmed and nodded. He carefully took a small sip of the tea. "Ooh, this stuff's pretty good! Anyway," he said before taking a second sip. "Indeed, this particular order were those who dedicated themselves to the creation and use of the mighty Dragons. Once a year, there was a festival where apprentice Dragon clansmen would "graduate," so to speak, and summon their dragons for the very first time. They would wish for things like peace, prosperity, good crops, and so forth... and so they did just as much good for Namekian society in this way as the other two clans."

ChiChi started to head back into the kitchen, but motioned for Marron, Videl and Oob to follow and lend a hand, which they did. At Kaio's beckoning, she left him the pot of tea as she passed, which he eagerly used to refill his cup and take another swig.

"The Dragon Balls themselves were always little more than a rumor to anyone other than the Namekians themselves," Piccolo continued, taking a small sip from his own cup. "So in preparation for this festival, all the outsiders currently conducting business or even living on Namek were evacuated under the pretense of it being a sacred event only for Namekians. Since alien residency didn't extend far beyond the capitol city, it was easily doable. This way, the Dragon Balls could remain a relative secret without fear of their reputation fostering greed-inspired hostility.

"One year, however, the Dragon Balls did become the target of a certain unscrupulous individual. However, it was a Namekian, the adolescent son and heir of the Warrior Clan's aging head elder. He was born with miraculous potential for growth, a 'Super Namek,' you might say, and he quickly rose to a place among the strongest warriors on the entire planet. But along with that power came a spark of evil. Through a combination of his ambition-filled upbringing and his constant exposure to alien influence, particularly that of criminals, he developed an unnatural and insatiable thirst for power."

"Boy," Goku cracked, slyly grinning at Piccolo. "Doesn't this sound familiar?"

"More than you'd think," Piccolo said. "You actually _met_ this particular Namekian in combat."

"I did?" Goku paused for a moment, sifting through his memory. Suddenly he realized it and his eyes popped wide. "Oh, are you talking about _Slug?_ Wow!"

"No kidding?" Gohan was equally surprised.

"Indeed. Slug developed a habit of taking all kinds of sinister and exploitative measures in secret for the sake of increasing his already incredible power," Kaio said. "But this over-ambitious attitude would bring about his exile from Planet Namek. As it was, he ultimately set his sights on the Dragon Balls for his own gain. He made a deal with a certain renegade alien to obtain and use a set during the festival, under the cover of the other summonings. It's unknown who the alien was, what they were after, or what eventually happened to them. But Slug wanted more power, and merely intended to use his "partner" as a scapegoat."

"However, things didn't go well for him," Piccolo said. "First off, there was only one wish granted, and it unexpectedly went to his partner. In his anger over this, he became sloppy and ended up exposing his nature and his guilt in not just this affair, but several other major occurrences. He was defeated and banished from the planet as a result."

"But what made it worse," Kaio said, "was the unfortunate choice they made in picking a set of Dragon Balls to use. They were, in fact, the Black Stars."

During this short pause, ChiChi re-entered the room, ringing a small bell. "Dinner time!" She proclaimed. All parties, especially the Saiyan ones, and especially Goku, immediately moved to follow her.

"It's a nice day, so we're using the big oak table outside," she announced. Everyone funneled themselves out the back door where a massive slab of wood fashioned into a table was waiting, upon which a veritable buffet of food awaited them. Three massive, roasted, and glazed fish sat waiting, steam still rising from them, surrounded by a wide variety of side dishes.

"Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy," Goku said, bouncing up and down in place. "ChiChi, you're the best!" He ran out in front of the crowd and leaped into the air, vaulting over the table and landing in his usual chair on the far side. He was suddenly confused, however, when the surface of the table was as high as his nose.

"...Oh, right."

He got up and darted around to the side of the house out of view, returning just a moment later with a large piece of firewood from the pile. He carefully placed it on his chair and re-situated himself while everyone else did the same.

"Time to dig in!"

Goku immediately began hoarding large amounts of food onto his plate, barely keeping it stocked as the contents rapidly moved right on to his mouth. His stuffed, black hole-like face wore an expression of eagerness, as he glanced back and forth between Piccolo and Kaio.

"I think he wants you to continue," Bulma chuckled.

"_Msssghewasfff_!"

"Uh... very well. You're all familiar with how normal Dragon Balls work," Piccolo explained. "They are tied to the life force of their creator. The dragon lives so long as he lives, and its capabilities reflect the power and spirit of the creator. But the Black Stars are different. They were an experiment, created by the head elder of the Dragon Clan himself: an old and wise Namekian named Katatz."

"Katatz?" Kuririn piped up, serving himself some mac and cheese. "I think I've heard that name somewhere before."

"These Dragon Balls were not connected to Katatz in the traditional way," Kaio continued, now on his fifth cup of tea. "Rather, he created them by "donating" a portion of his own life to power them continuously, regardless of his own condition. This had potent but dangerous results."

"Dragon Balls," Piccolo demonstrated, "work on a balance of positive and negative energy. Positive energy is what fuels the Dragons. It is a creative power which they use to grant the wishes. Negative energy, however, is what's left over after the wish. It is a void, a destructive power. It causes things to break down rather than come together.

"When a wish is made, the Positive Energy is used and a proportionate amount of Negative Energy is left in its place. The purpose of the Dragon Balls turning to stone for a year is so that they are allowed time to reabsorb and recycle this Negative Energy before they are used again."

"Wow," Gohan remarked, helping Videl pick out some easily-chewed food for Gosan, who was giggling in amusement over his grandfather's antics. "There's a lot more to them than I thought."

"But, because of their alternative method of creation, the Black Star Balls are different in this area as well," Kaio explained. He took another sip from his seventh serving of tea, paused for a moment as his eyelid twitched a bit, then continued. "They have no control or moderation in the amount of Positive Energy they use. There are no limits or disallowed wishes like with the other sets. And no matter what the nature of the wish, they use ALL of their energy at once. And that's a lot."

He went to pour another cup, but to his dismay he realized the pot was empty. He held it out to ChiChi, a look of pathetic desperation lining his face. She stood there for a moment, staring curiously, before shrugging, taking the pot, and heading back inside.

"To make matters worse, when first used by Slug, the Black Star Dragon Balls were still incomplete," Piccolo continued. "They weren't yet designed to re-absorb the Negative Energy like most other sets. So, their use created a massive pocket of Negative Energy, right there on Planet Namek. The results were disastrous. The planet was nearly destroyed, and almost all life on it was wiped out. Only one Namekian remained alive: the Great Elder. At the last moment, he summoned Porunga for the first time using his own remaining set of Dragon Balls and repaired the damage."

"But doing so was a double-edged sword," Kaio said, twiddling his thumbs and rocking back and forth slightly, casting occasional quick glances at the door leading into the kitchen. "At the time, Porunga could only grant one wish. So a year passed until he could use the Dragon Balls again, but by then, none of the other Namekians could be returned to life. All he could do was rebuild from nothing."

"So," Vegeta inquired between bites of a massive piece of fish. "How did these Black Star Dragon Balls end up on Earth?"

"I think I've got an idea," Gohan noted.

"Mere moments before the planet was due to be completely destroyed, the Great Elder managed to at least save one particular Namekian," Piccolo recounted. "It was the child of Katatz."

"Oh, of course!" Kuririn snapped his fingers. "Now I remember! He became Kami!"

"That's right," Kaio said. ChiChi returned with a new pot of tea, and Kaio eagerly took it. He quickly refilled his cup faster than seemed physically possible, and then chugged it all even faster. He then started wincing and choking because it was freshly-made and still very hot.

"... Something happened amidst the whole ordeal which caused him to lose his memories," Piccolo said. "Either a head injury, or mental trauma, or maybe even both."

"The... _-hack-_ Great Elder apparently saw fit to entrust the child with the Black Stars," Kaio said. He took another sip, a gentler one this time, from what was now his twelfth cup of tea. His hands were visibly shaking ever so slightly. "He left instructions to keep them safe and never use them."

"Which he did, and quite studiously," Piccolo replied, taking another small sip of what was still his first cup. Oddly enough, it seemed to have a calming effect on him in contrast to Kaio's newfound hyperactivity. "He did, however, study them closely. Their size, their function, and even the appearance of their dragon inspired his eventual creation of Earth's Dragon Balls and Shenlong. But all throughout his life, he kept them safely nestled away in some place or another. Even once he claimed the position of Earth's god after nearly a century, they remained a secret. Not even Mr. Popo was privy to any information about them, other than that they existed."

"I guessh w're lucky," Goku muttered in between bites, his mouth stuffed with half-chewed fish, "Thut Kami never got tempted t' ushe 'em."

"Goku," ChiChi scolded, and delivered him a quick, firm tap on the head from her seat next to him. "Don't talk with your mouth full."

"That's right," Piccolo nodded. "Even more lucky that my sire, the Demon King, never got his hands on them either..." Piccolo suddenly turned to Goku, an annoyed grimace on his face. "Is... is that what you were referring to, Son?"

"Hurh?" Goku returned a clueless stare, his cheeks full nearly to bursting with mashed potatoes, gravy, and possibly part of his plate. "Whurcha trlk'n 'bout?"

"When you punched me in the stomach and said, 'Just like the old days?' Did you mean...?"

Goku gave a wide grin, some gravy leaking out from between his front teeth.

"You vile little creature," Piccolo jabbed, smirking in satisfaction as Chi-Chi again smacked the bite-sized Saiyan for his equally minuscule table manners. This elicited an outburst of giggles from baby Gosan, much to the annoyance of his mother, who was presently trying to feed him some corn.

"Anyway," Piccolo resumed. "Particularly in light of the Demon King's emergence, Kami thought it best to move them to a new, more permanent, and secure location, up within the Temple where he could keep it under close watch, and far from the reach of any Earthling. They remained there with him for centuries, sealed away..."

"Until our old friend Pilaf stumbled across them," Bulma mumbled.

"So, wait," Gohan noted, pausing between bites. "If they've been used right here on Earth... why is Earth still here, and not destroyed like Namek almost was?"

"Well," Kaio said, pouring cup number sixteen. "It has mostly to do with the difference in the planets themselves. You see, Namek doesn't move. It has, or rather, _had_, an interesting position within its solar system. It had three suns and sort of just remained in one spot between them, spinning on its axis, rather than orbiting them. So when this massive pocket of Negative Energy was formed, Namek was left to simply sit there and stew in it. But Earth, on the other hand..."

"Has moved out of the pocket," Gohan concluded.

"That's right," Kaio continued, now frantically sipping away at cup nineteen. "In addition to this, the Black Star Balls now work a bit differently than they did then. After their first use and at the cost of his own life, Katatz made two desperate modifications to them. The first was to re-absorb their Negative Energy like other sets did. Unfortunately, it was too late, and the damage had already been done. Namek's core was destabilized. The second tweak was in response to the failure of the first. He modified them to scatter after they were used."

"Just like Earth's!" Goku commented while refilling his plate.

"Not quite," Kaio said. "Shenlong's Dragon Balls merely disperse themselves across whatever planet they're used on. But Katatz enacted a much more drastic measure with these. When used, the Black Star Dragon Balls will spread themselves... across the entire _galaxy_."

"What?" Every single mouth at the table dropped open in shock. Goku's still had some food within it, which dribbled out onto the table, eliciting another smack to his head from ChiChi, which in turn riled up more giggling from baby Gosan.

"The entire... galaxy?" Pan seemed flabbergasted. "That's insane!"

"It must have been a last-ditch effort," Gohan reasoned. "So that even if it cost one more planet somewhere, the Dragon Balls would be all but impossible to gather and would never be used again."

"So, you can see how Earth is in a serious pickle now," Kaio lamented. "Due to its movement and the balls' absorption of SOME Negative Energy right before they scattered, Earth is out of immediate danger for now. It got away with just the earthquake from Xuelong's summoning and a few bad storms afterwards, without suffering any permanent damage." He rubbed his temples and took a small sip from cup number twenty, seemingly starting to come down from his tea-high. "But a year from now, Earth will pass back through that pocket of Negative Energy. Unless the Black Star Balls are here to absorb the rest of it..."

"Then the planet is doomed," Vegeta concluded.

"Can Shenlong do anything about it?" Goten asked.

"Doubtful," Piccolo replied. "Xuelong's power far surpasses Shenlong's. He would be powerless to affect anything brought about by Pilaf's wish."

"It could be worth a try, at least," Gohan said. "In the long run, it would be best to let the Black Stars remain scattered like Katatz intended. If we can find some other way to get Earth out of trouble, of course."

"I'm cursing myself for not keeping a closer eye on Earth," Kaio lamented. "Things have been so peaceful since Majin Boo was defeated that I let myself become complacent. I figured that with Goku and the rest of you here, there was nothing to worry about." He adjusted his glasses. "If I had been watching the planet like I'm supposed to, I might have been able to track the Black Star Balls' paths..."

"I don't see how we can track them, either," Bulma said. "They've never even shown up on my Dragon Radar." She sighed and propped her chin up on her hands to sulk. "If I even had _one_ of them, I might be able to figure somethi-"

Piccolo held out one of the Black Star Dragon Balls. Everybody recoiled in shock again. Gosan squealed in amusement again.

"Piccolo!" Kuririn exclaimed. "You have one of them?"

"When did you go into space?" Goku's dumb question elicited another smack, this time from both Pan and ChiChi on either side of him.

"I arrived at the Temple too late to prevent the wish," Piccolo explained. "But I did manage to intercept and retrieve one of the Dragon Balls as they were angling up into the sky."

"Hey look," Goku noted. "It's the four-star ball!"

"Let me see that!" Bulma leaned over across the table and snatched the ball from Piccolo's hand. She began looking it over closely, with Trunks also studying it over her shoulder. She then placed it on the table and whipped her gaze around to Goku.

"Hey, Son," she said, standing up. "Can you take me back to Capsule Corp. real quick? It's important."

"Uh, okay," Goku said. He hopped out of his chair and ran around to Bulma's side. He took her hand with one of his, then brought the index and middle fingers of his other to his forehead. He concentrated, trying to scout out Ki so as to perform Instant Movement. "Hmm, let's see..."

"My mom was cavorting about in the garden when we left," Bulma said. "She's probably still there."

"Okay, I found her," Goku said. The next second, they had blinked out of sight.

Curious, Kuririn reached over and picked up the Dragon Ball. His wife and daughter leaned over on either side of him to examine it as well.

"It feels... cold," he noted. "And the inside of it looks so dark and creepy."

"That and a bigger, more sinister dragon," Eighteen snipped. "Did this Katatz _want_ them to seem so evil?"

A moment later, Goku and Bulma suddenly reappeared, the latter carrying a small tool case and the ever-recognizable Dragon Radar. She sat back down in her chair, pushing aside her empty plate to make room to work. She placed both items down, opened up the case to reveal a thorough set of micro tools for electronics, and swiped the Dragon Ball back from Kuririn.

"Okay, let's see here," she said, beginning to unfasten the Dragon Radar's back panel with the screwdriver. Goku hopped up onto the back of her chair and watched intently as she tinkered away.

"So wait a sec," ChiChi noticed, as she stood up and began clearing some dishes with Marron's help. "If Shenlong can't undo a wish from this more powerful dragon..." She glanced over at her husband. "Then what are we gonna do about Goku?"

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

"Eureka!" Bulma excitedly proclaimed, holding the Dragon Radar above her head and grinning. She then held it out for everyone to see. At dead center on its screen was was small dot blinking and beeping, with a number '1' next to it.

"Just as I thought," she cheered. "These Dragon Balls just emit a different frequency than the normal ones! We can track them after all!"

"No kiddin'?" Goku squealed. "Awesome!"

"You mean you can track that one," Vegeta kill-joyed. "What about the other six?"

"Don't you worry about that!" Bulma winked at him, then turned to her son. "Hey, Trunks, do you want to get out of that office for a while?"

"Does a bear-bandit crap in the woods?" He responded. "What do you have in mind?"

"How about helping me finish up the X-7?"

"How about _awesome_?"

"What's an X-7?" Pan asked.

"It's a space ship," Bulma explained. "Capsule Corp's latest model. And in a week or so, it's going to go on its maiden voyage."

Goku's eyes were as wide as his ever-emptying plate. "You mean...?"

"That's right," she said. "Those Dragon Balls are out there somewhere, so we're just going to have to go find them!"


	9. Hell Hath No Fury

_**Author's Note**: This chapter and all its squirrels are dedicated in loving memory to my goofy old dog, Butch (1997-2010)._

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Nine - "_Hell Hath No Fury_"

It was a bright and sunny morning in Metro West, and throughout its various and numerous bustling thoroughfares, all sorts of creatures were going about their daily business. The birds were chirping merrily as they soared through the air, scanning the ground for worms or whatever else birds eat. The squirrels were doing more or less the same thing, except skittering on the ground instead of flying, and looking for nuts and stuff instead of worms. Though perhaps, a few of those squirrels _wished_ they were birds, because being able to search from the sky would make it a heck of a lot easier to find their nuts. Nobody can ever really tell what squirrels are thinking.

However, there was one notable organization based in Metro West which had dared to chase the answer to that mystery. It was called Capsule Corporation. About ten years prior, the infamous animal-loving tendencies of its aged and whimsical founder and president reached an all-time high, likely coupled with a degree of onset senility. He became so enamored with the dozen or so friendly squirrels living in his indoor garden that he set out to use the magic of modern technology to become able to communicate with them on a personal, vocal level.

Millions of Zeni were eventually sunk into the research. The most brilliant minds from across all divisions of the entire company were brought together to strive towards the breakthrough of being able to talk to squirrels. However, after about five years of research, the old president finally succumbed to the rigors of old age and passed away. Soon thereafter, the project was dropped like a bad habit, since everybody involved knew that it was a completely silly notion to begin with and had only really been pursuing it for the old man's sake.

Unknown to most, however, one other particularly eccentric senior researcher from the disbanded team (_nicknamed "Dr. Slump" by his colleagues)_ actually continued with the project on a personal basis, most likely due to being somewhat senile himself. With the help of his super-genius son, he eventually succeeded in devising a fancy, streamlined, helmet-based translator system that perfectly analyzed and interpreted squirrel-chatter into human speech and vice-versa. However, he subsequently also trashed the project, as it turned out that squirrels have practically nothing interesting to say, and most of their chatters simply translate to some variation of, "Where are my nuts?"

Unlike their late patriarch, the current generation running Capsule Corporation had little to no expressed fascination with squirrels. That included the young heiress to the company currently undergoing her daily morning grooming in her room, though her interest in nuts of any kind were questionable. Either which way or how, her interest for today was somewhat more typical for that of a teenage girl: a day out on the town with her best friend.

Bra sat idly in front of her mirror, happily humming along to the latest hit single by _Field of View_ as she leisurely combed her long, blue hair. As the deceptively-upbeat tune about unrequited love approached its final measures, so did she finish up with her preparations. She procured a hot pink-colored hair band from one of several drawers in her vast vanity desk and fitted it neatly on her scalp, letting some of her bangs fall over it to each side. Standing up, she picked up her small personal case of capsules, carefully took inventory of its contents, then closed it before stowing it away in her purse. She carried this with her as she exited the room, emerging into the spacious halls of the mansion's fifth floor.

Rounding a wide corner, Bra approached and entered a tiny open elevator. Pressing one of a row of small buttons at waist-level caused the entire lift structure to hum to life and make its swift, yet smooth, descent to the ground floor. Exiting the lift, she emerged into and began to traverse across the expansive indoor garden that occupied the center-most area of the first three floors. Various animals of all kinds – cats, dogs, dinosaurs, and yes, even a few squirrels – wandered around the area, one or two even momentarily approaching Bra to give a friendly greeting before running off again.

At the far end of the garden, a large pair of glass doors opened for her automatically, allowing her to seamlessly walk into the building's foyer and greeting area. She turned to her immediate left and addressed the small receptionist robot permanently affixed behind a desk.

"Has Papa been in here yet?"

"_No, miss_," it answered. "_His whereabouts are unknown_."

She sighed, then moseyed over to a couch near the front doors and sat herself down to wait. "Guess he's just running a bit behind."

Ten minutes later, she abruptly stood back up in flustered annoyance.

"Okay, this is ridiculous! Did he forget?" She marched back over to the robot and spoke to it again. "He's still not around?"

"_I'm afraid not, miss. Cameras have not detected him for quite some time._"

"Where's Mama, then?"

"_Mrs. Bulma is currently working in the hangar."_

Sighing in exasperation again, Bra headed off down the main hallway to the right of the main entrance. It angled around to the eastern side of the building, where another large doorway granted access into one of several laboratories on the floor. This one in particular, however, also contained the entrance to a wide stairway leading down into the basement level, specifically out to the underground ship hangar. At the end of this passage, Bra made her way through another automated doorway into the large room.

The relative tranquility which filled the rest of the mansion was due mostly in part to all the hustle and bustle transpiring here. The focus of attention was a large construct, undoubtedly the ship which Trunks and Goku would be blasting off in next week, suspended in the center of the chamber by a considerable amount of scaffolding and hanging supports. The upper portion of it had a bulbous shape, though it was still incomplete and half-covered with gaps which had either not yet received their plating or were intentionally open for further construction. The lower portions looked like some incredibly technical engine and were under service by a good half-dozen scientists and mechanics surrounding it. At least another dozen workers were busily scampering about, operating machinery, moving materials, and generally attending to all sorts of coordination and maintenance duties.

It took only a moment for Bra to soak it all in, scan the area, and locate the individual she was searching for. Her middle-aged mother, Bulma, noticed her at just about the same instant. She was suspended in mid-air on a small, floating, one-person platform, having been observing some work on the upper parts of the ship. She dismissed herself from her conversation with a worker, then navigated the platform down next to Bra, halting it to hover a few feet above and adjacent to her.

"Hi, sweetie," she said cheerfully. As she leaned over onto the platform's railing, a small black cat crawled out from the back of her work jacket and situated itself on her shoulder. Bulma reached up with one hand to scratch behind his ears as she spoke. "What are you still doing here?"

"Don't ask me," Bra replied. "Papa and I were supposed to leave over ten minutes ago, but I can't find him anywhere! Do you know where he is, Mama?"

Bulma sighed and smiled a bit. "Oh, Vegeta," she said. "Sorry, can't say I do. I've been down here all morning and – Ow, Tama, no with the claws – I haven't seen heads or tails of him." She pointed to a computer console over by the door. "Why don't you call and ask Trunks? Unless your Dad's actually _trying_ to hide, Trunks should be able to tell where he is."

"Okay," Bra replied, skipping off to the computer as Bulma tucked the cat from in her face back up onto her shoulder, then steered the platform back into the workspace. Bra sat down on the stool in front of the screen and punched a few buttons, and in a few seconds a connection was established to Capsule Corp's main office building elsewhere in Metro West. The face of a young blonde woman, with long hair tied in a braided ponytail, wide eyes adorned by small glasses, and a so-petite-it's-barely-there nose, appeared on the screen.

"Hello, you've reached Capsule Corporation, the vice-president's office! How may I direct yo–"

"Hey, Marron, it's me," Bra hastily cut in and greeted her. "Is my brother there?"

"Oh, hello Bra," she answered. "Yes, he's right inside, let me get him." She leaned over, flipped a switch or two, then pressed an intercom button. "Trunks, Bra is on the phone."

Bra could hear another, distinctly male, voice through the video. "Ah, okay. Patch her through to me in here. Thanks, Marron!"

"Right away, and y-you're welcome," Marron replied, visibly beaming from the compliment. Bra rolled her eyes as the video immediately switched to show Trunks, wearing a shirt and tie and seated at his office desk. He looked into the camera and spoke.

"What's up?"

"Trunks, Dad's supposed to take me out, but I can't find him! Do you have any idea where he is?"

Trunks listened, then closed his eyes and concentrated. After a short moment, he opened them again and answered.

"I can still sense him at home somewhere."

"But the robots haven't seen him at all!"

"This may be kind of a dumb question," Trunks said. "But did you check the Gravity Room?"

"Huh?" She puzzled. "But it's almost ten o'clock now! He's always done with his morning training by eight!"

Trunks shrugged. "Well, he's at the house _somewhere_, no doubt about it."

Bra rubbed her temples and frowned. "Okay, thanks." Trunks nodded, and the link was cut. Bra stood up and quickly marched back out of the hangar. She backtracked all the way through the underground passage, up the stairs, through the labs, through the hallway, through the foyer, through the garden, and finally boarded the same elevator in which she'd descended earlier. This time, she pressed the button for the sixth and uppermost floor, which solely and entirely consisted of her father's Gravity Room.

However, she hit the stop button before the climb was complete. On the fifth floor, emerging from a staircase, he suddenly appeared. Vegeta, unadorned from the waist up save for a towel slung over his muscular shoulders, had begun walking around a corner towards his and Bulma's master bedroom. Bra hastily emerged from the elevator in time to catch his attention.

"Papa!"

Before she'd even said anything, Vegeta's finely-tuned hearing and peripheral vision had picked up her presence, and he calmly turned to face her.

"Oh, Bra," he casually acknowledged her. "Are you ready to go?"

"I've _been_ ready!" She indignantly informed him. "Where have _you_ been?"

"Training, of course," he replied. "Since I'm spending so much of my day to drive you to Satan City, I combined my morning and noon sessions." He glanced around, clearly now noticing Bra's annoyance. "I guess I lost track of time." He began walking towards his room again. "I'll just put on a shirt and we'll leave."

"Hold on a second!" Bra abruptly reached out and grabbed him by the arm, pulling him in close. Vegeta was momentarily stunned and confused as she leaned in and sniffed at him. Her face immediately contorted in disgust.

"_Ewewewewewew_!" She exclaimed. "Papa, I am NOT spending two hours in a jet flier with you if you smell like THAT!" She turned him around and pushed him in the opposite direction. "Go take a shower first!"

Vegeta simply gazed at her in meek disbelief for a moment.

"Hurry!"

He then obediently walked off, defeated, to do as she commanded.

* * *

In another part of the world, the streets and sidewalks of yet another locale were filled to the brim with people, all going about their typical early-afternoon business. Satan City was a thriving center of commerce and entertainment, and at times just as much, if not more, of that business was for play as it was for work.

In particular, the grand, expansive park in its central district was a mecca for the former. Bicycles of both the wheeled and hovering variety were always visible zipping through its trails, dodging pedestrians in their paths. Children and adults alike ran across the grassy hills, flying kites, playing games, frolicking with each other for various reasons, and generally having a good time.

Even the wildlife seemed to thrive in this environment. Ducks and geese paddled and splashed about in the park's large lake and various smaller ponds and creeks. Birds built and minded their nests in the sturdy trees, which they hastily fluttered to and from, back and forth. If you were quiet and still enough, you might even get to observe a squirrel or two at close range - such as this little one in particular, who was skittering about, on and around a tree right by the lakeside, by which he'd buried a few nuts _somewhere_ and was trying to recover them. He was in no particular hurry to do so, since he was a squirrel and squirrels don't tend to worry about keeping schedules on anything more precise than a month-by-month basis. There were no humans immediately nearby him at the moment, so he'd let his guard down a bit. That was his mistake.

Suddenly, and without warning, two human figures miraculously appeared out of thin air. The squirrel was more startled than he'd ever been in his squirrelly little life, and he dashed up the tree to hide so quickly that you'd think he might have actually used the same teleportation technique which these newcomers had just used to travel here.

The smaller of the two, apparently a prepubescent boy with wild black hair and donned in a martial arts uniform, glanced around happily before speaking to his companion.

"Right on target! Looks like we're early."

"Well that's no surprise," the other said. It was a girl, in her younger teen years and almost two heads taller than the boy, yet actually by far his junior in age. She likewise had dark black hair, and she wore a casual, tomboyish outfit of a t-shirt and calf-length pants. "Thanks, Grandpa, you didn't really have to take me."

"That's alright, I was heading over this way, anyhoo," he replied. "I gotta go t' Mister Satan's house about something important." He took a few steps away, began hovering above the ground, then turned back to speak. "See you two later, Pan! ChiChi says dinner's at eight!"

"Okay!" She called back, waving as he left. "Say hi to Grandpa for me!"

Goku easily gained altitude and casually cruised high above the city. He smiled as he looked down at the surface below. The multitudes of grounded people looked like ants from this level as they skittered around living their lives. A few of them were somewhat higher up, namely those who were lucky enough to afford a flying vehicle and zip about in special sky lanes to more quickly get to wherever they needed or wanted to be. Yet few of them tended to ever just look up. The only ones whom Goku caught noticing him were a handful of children flying kites in the park. They frantically waved and smiled at him, and he returned the gesture.

After freely cruising a bit more, Goku decided to get down to business. He closed his eyes and relaxed, letting his mind expand outward to detect whom he was looking for. First, he detected Vegeta far off to the West, making his way here to Satan City. He was moving slower than usual, since he was piloting a jet flier to transport Bra rather than flying on his own. At this rate, they'd get there in just under an hour, and Bra and Pan would get to spend their girls' day out together as planned.

Next, Goku focused a little bit closer to himself. It only took a second to locate the large Ki belonging to Boo, and subsequently the much tinier but still familiar signature of Mr. Satan right nearby it. As expected, they were both home. Curiously, however, there were two other somewhat-large Ki right there as well. Goku wondered who they were, as he'd never noticed them before. But he figured he'd find out when he got there, and he rocketed off to the South towards Mr. Satan's estate.

After hardly more than another minute, Goku had zeroed in and approached Mr. Satan's magnificent mansion on the Southern edge of the city, surrounded by a wide, gated estate covered with expansive fields and fountains and ponds and other what-nots which ridiculously wealthy people tended to fill their property with. Goku soared around to the back yard where Mr. Satan himself was visible, wearing naught but a pair of shorts while relaxing on a reclining yard chair and getting tanned in the late May sun. In fact, it seemed like he was asleep, as well as quite more than just "tanned."

In a playful mood, Goku hovered a few yards above him and called out.

"Hello!"

Startled, Satan's nap came to an abrupt halt, and he jolted upright. He glanced around frantically, searching for the source of the intruding voice. He, of course, neglected to look upwards, allowing Goku to stealthily touch down right behind him and speak again.

"Heya, Mark!"

"Yeep!" Satan jumped three feet in the air yet again, then quickly turned around and slapped a hand over Goku's mouth. "Hey, who are you and how d'you know that na-" In mid-sentence, he realized who it was. He removed his hand, and his expression quickly shifted from one of shock to relief.

"Geez, Goku, ya scared me!" He took another moment to look Goku over. "Well I'll be! You really did get yerself turned into a kid after all! Videl told me, but I didn't quite believe it 'till I saw it with my own eyes!" He crouched down and tapped him on the forehead. "I'll betch'er still just as powerful though, huh?"

"Far as I can tell!" Goku replied, grinning. "Speakin' of looking weird, you okay? You're kinda... red." He reached over and likewise poked Mr. Satan's sunburned face. The elder man reacted by wincing and whipping his hand up in a futile attempt to relieve the pain.

"Owowowow!" He yelped. "Aw man, every time, I tell myself I won't fall asleep, but..." He stood back up. "C'mon inside, I gotta get out of the sun. You want some lunch or something!"

"Oh boy, sure!"

Ten minutes later, Goku was munching away on his ninth triple-decker sandwich, while Mr. Satan's kitchen staff, among whom Goku and his appetite were infamously known, frantically brought out three more and worked to prepare sandwiches thirteen through nineteen. Mr. Satan idly chewed on his _first_ and only sandwich, marveling at the incredible rate of digestion he was witnessing across the table.

"Where does it all go...?"

Somewhere during sandwich eleven, they were joined by another notable guest. The ever-jolly Mister Boo, allured by the smell of the food, wandered in to the small dining room.

"Aaaah, sandwiches!"

"Oh heyr Boh," Goku spittle-talked in greeting before swallowing. "Just the guy I wanted t' see!"

Boo sat down at an adjacent chair and grabbed two of the four additional sandwiches brought out just seconds ago. The cooking staff began to outright panic now, as they'd never before had to feed both Goku _and_ Boo.

"Ah see," Satan said. "I had a feelin' you weren't just here to visit."

"That's right," Goku said, pausing momentarily to talk. "I came to ask Boo somethin'. See, did anyone ever explain to ya what happened last week?"

"Yeah," Satan replied, nodding. "Gohan and Videl were down here a few days ago and filled me in. Although, uh... unless I'm mistaken, isn't there a more powerful one of them magic dragons out there somewhere that could fix this? I still have a little trouble wrappin' my head around it all, but..."

"Oh yeah," Goku answered. "On Planet Namek. Well actually, I did pop over there to ask them to try, since Porunga did fix it back when these evil Dragon Balls were first used all those years ago. Problem is, since now he's linked to someone who's less powerful than the ol' Great Elder, he ain't stronger than this other scary-lookin' dragon anymore, either. Porunga can't do anythin' about these Dragon Balls, or anything they did. So that means I'm stuck as a kid until we get them back, too."

"Ah, I see," Satan replied, scratching his head. "I think."

"So that bein' that, we're goin' into space to get those Dragon Balls back. We're leavin' in... uh, two days. It's gonna be me and Trunks so far, since he knows how to fly an' fix the ship, and I'm plenty strong enough t'handle anything that might get in the way. But we're still lookin' to add one more person, so I was wondering." Goku smiled. "Boo, how'd you like to come into space with us? I'm sure it'd be fun, and you'd make a great training partner. I figured I'd leave Oob in charge of lookin' after Earth while I'm gone, since that's kinda what I trained him for in th' first place."

Boo munched on a sandwich, his chubby face appearing as contemplative as anyone could ever tell. After a moment or two, he swallowed and spoke.

"No thanks!"

"Aaaw," Goku whined, leaning forward on the table. "Why not? S'not like you've got anythin' to do now that the Budokai's over!"

"No, not really," Boo said. "But I'd rather stay home with my family. Especially if Earth might blow up."

"Family?" Goku said. "Y'mean Mark, or..." He paused for a minute, before suddenly remembering the two other Ki he'd noticed earlier. "Wait a sec, y'don't mean...?"

Boo nodded happily, then stood up and called to nowhere in particular.

"Hey, c'mon in!"

Though the exclamation was relatively quiet, somehow the two beings in far-off and completely opposite ends of the estate heard it. Goku felt them each home in on the kitchen, closing the hundreds-of-meters gaps within seconds.

Having simply been elsewhere in the house, the first to appear came in through the wide main dining room door like any civilized being would. It dashed in and leaped upon Mr. Boo in a sudden and enthusiastic embrace, which finally slowed it down enough for Goku to identify it. It was another Majin. It was similarly covered in bright pink "skin," and its overall body structure resembled a slightly taller version of the short and maniacal Boo whom Goku had finished off with the Spirit Bomb almost 15 years ago, but with one major difference. It was female.

Her figure was, even to Goku, distinctly identifiable as that of the fairer sex. Her facial features were soft and slender, with three appendages on her head, similar to Boo's, hanging down like hair; two in the front each off to one side, and one more hanging down in the back like a hair ponytail. Her eyes were wide and cheerful, also similar to the more "humanoid" Boos of the past in that they were almost entirely black save for the deep red irises. She wore a simple outfit somewhat resembling Boo's, with a small black tube-top rather than a vest and baggy pants which ended at calf-level where a pair of tall boots covered them.

"Hello, darling!" She squealed, clinging to the once-again-seated Boo. After a few seconds of nuzzling her face against his, she noticed Goku and looked him over. "Who're you?"

Goku opened his mouth to answer, but was a bit too surprised for any words to escape. In that gap of a few seconds, the second individual reached them. This one approached from outside and zeroed in on a small window, which was cracked open to let in some air along with ambient light from its position high up in the wall. The second being's aim was off by just about a foot, however, and it smacked itself against the edge of the window, scrunching up into a pink blob as a result. After a mere moment, however, it squirmed and wiggled its way to the window's open side and squeezed in.

It bounced over to the side of the other two, completely regaining its form in the process. It was another female Majin, resembling the first one, yet obviously much smaller and younger in appearance. She had two head appendages compared to the other's three, and each hung down in the front, though both curled off to one side like pigtails. She wore a simple black one-piece dress and white booties, and clung tightly to the other female as she also stared at Goku warily.

"This is Goku," Boo informed both of them, before turning back to their guest. "This is my wife, Booby, and my kid, Jeeny!"

"Your WIFE?" Goku exclaimed in shock, standing up in his chair.

"Uh-huh!" Boo nodded.

"And KID?"

Boo responded just the same.

"Wow!" Goku plopped back down to sit again, as he looked them both over. "But she's a Majin... thing like you, right? Where'd she come from?"

"I made her!"

"You... _made_ her?"

"Yup!" Boo nodded again, then reached over to pat Jeeny on the head. "Then we made Jeeny!"

Goku stared for a minute before speaking again. "Boy, you just get weirder an' weirder..."

"Who you calling weird?" Booby protested. Jeeny, continuing to be shy, hopped up onto Boo's shoulder and hid partway behind his head.

"Haha, you ain't met these two before? Why," Mr. Satan inquired. "Pannie comes over to play with Jeeny every so often." He leaned over and addressed the toddler Majin. "Jeeny, sweetie, this fella is Pan's other grandpa! He's a nice guy, really!" Jeeny gave one or two more cautionary glances, but continued to hide behind Boo, now also attempting to use parts of his cape for cover.

"Well, I guess I understand about not wantin' to go into space, then," Goku remarked. "You look really happy, Boo."

Boo continued to wear his characteristic smile. "Yeah," he said. "Besides, I destroyed a lot of planets out there, so people won't like me very much."

"Well, it's been a few million years," Goku said. "I bet they've gotten over it by now..."

* * *

"Let's see... where is she?"

Bra muttered to herself as she pressed her face up against the jet flier's glass window, visually scanning the ground below and its inhabitants. Vegeta, however, was already calmly circling the vehicle around for a landing, as if he already knew exactly where their target was. Which he did.

"She's right next to the fountain," he said.

Bra turned back around in surprise. "Whoa, really?" She then just as quickly resumed face-painting the glass, sans the paint. "We're still so high that I can't even tell! How did you see her?"

"I didn't," Vegeta sternly replied. "She could tell I was coming, so she raised her Ki a little and I could sense her. You could too, if you'd just let Trunks or me teach you." He then muttered mostly under his breath, "Wouldn't mind you finally learning to fly, either..."

"Oh, whatever, Papa." She hopped back into her seat and nuzzled up against him while sweet-talking. "Don't you enjoy spending some quality time on a day-trip with your favorite daughter?"

"Not when you play your annoying music the whole time," he sulked.

Another minute later, and they'd landed the flier right next to the aforementioned fountain, at nearly dead-center in Satan City's grand park district. Just about all of the nearby pedestrians had run off in a hurry to get out of the way. But one of the few who kept their cool and stayed behind was the one whom Bra had arranged to meet up with: Pan.

She had been leisurely sitting on the edge of the fountain awaiting their arrival, and there she remained for the moment as the flier opened up and they emerged. At that time, she hopped down and dashed over to greet Bra with a friendly hug, which ended up accompanied by indecipherable squeal-like greetings between them. Vegeta simply stood there, arms crossed, patiently waiting for the two hyperactive teenage girls to become responsive to anything but each other.

"Alright then," he said. "You're spending the night at Gohan's house, right?"

"Yes!"

"You've got your capsule case?"

"Yep!"

"It's YOUR capsule case, not your mother's again?"

"YES, Papa!"

"Fine then," he finished. He then turned to the flier and pressed a small button next to its door. With a flash of light and a puff of smoke, the vehicle disappeared, replaced by a singular tiny capsule which now contained its particle-ized form. Vegeta snatched the capsule out of mid-air and placed it in a small case, which he then secured inside a zippered side-pocket on his pants. "See you tomorrow."

He jumped up into the sky, taking flight very suddenly and harshly compared to the gentle ascent which Goku had made earlier. Once he was high enough, barely above sky-car traffic level, a mass of golden light enveloped him with a flash and a boom. In that same instant, he rocketed off in the direction from which he and Bra had come, his Super Saiyan power and speed ensuring he'd make the return trip to Metro West in a matter of minutes, rather than hours.

"Show-off," Bra snipped, then turned to Pan with a bright smile. "Okay, where to first?"

The girls' first stop turned out to be a small fair of some sort, which was in-progress right there in the park. Several of the attractions were run by kids from Pan's school, whom she greeted enthusiastically and introduced to Bra. Several of them were initially surprised that Pan personally knew the heiress to Capsule Corporation, though most shrugged it off as "just another part of Pan's weirdness". Once the two girls were done with that, they moved on to the main attraction of their trip.

They shopped. They shopped as they had never shopped before. Such a pastime was distinctly characteristic of Bra, though usually it served little or no actual purpose. This time, however, she was on a mission, and that mission's name was Son Pan. Having been thoroughly disappointed with Pan's typical tank-top-and-knee-cut-jeans outfit, Bra decided to appoint herself as a top agent of the fashion police and personally plan and fund a makeover.

For hours and hours they perused Satan City's shopping district, purchasing profuse amounts of clothing, the sheer volume of which would have been impossible for anyone _not_ carrying around multiple empty storage capsules for just this very reason. Pan was a bit uncomfortable at first with the idea of Bra buying so much for just her, but her anxieties were quickly quelled. Bra insisted that money was absolutely a non-issue, and this was every bit as much worth it for her as for Pan.

At long last, Bra was satisfied and ready to put Pan through one more rigorous ritual: a haircut. Thus it is here, in one of the city's most prestigious salons, where the story moves back into real-time narration. For the past twenty-something minutes, Bra had been lounging about in the salon's waiting area, casually flipping through magazines and idly fiddling about on her phone. Eventually, she put both away and stood herself up. She practically owned this salon, and she knew its stylists, their work, and their speed like the back of her hand. And if she was right, Pan would make her grand entrance right about... now.

Like clockwork, Bra's prediction was proven correct. At that moment, Pan meekly rounded a corner, emerging from the back room of the salon. Her new 'do wasn't too dissimilar from her natural hairstyle, at least at first glance. In reality, it had not only been trimmed a bit shorter, but snipped and bobbed and what-not to be much more, how would you say, cute. It complimented her new top-and-skirt-centric outfit well, to boot.

Pan shyly shuffled her feet and turned her head from side to side so as to allow Bra to examine the stylist's work. Bra seemed to wholeheartedly approve, judging from the enormous tip she granted as she paid for the cut and complimented the work.

"Wow, it looks great! I knew it would!"

"I dunno, Bra," Pan said. "I don't think the whole frilly look really suits me..."

"Nonsense!" Bra replied, urging Pan out the door. "My work is flawless! Now the final step is to show it off!" They began walking down the street.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, we still have almost two hours before dinner, so we'll find some 'company' to spend it with!"

"Company?" Pan flustered up. "Do you mean... boys?"

"No," Bra snarked, rolling her eyes. "I mean we find a tree full of squirrels. Really go nuts. Of COURSE I mean boys, whaddya think this is?"

"But, but, but..." Despite her vastly superior strength, Pan wasn't having much luck resisting Bra's influence. "I already have a boyfriend..."

"And I have, like, ten. So what?" Bra said. "Nobody's tellin' you to get married. We're just having some fun, that's all!" She suddenly stopped and turned to an adjacent building. "Ah, this will do great!"

Having not been paying attention to their course, Pan turned and looked. It was a karaoke bar, the kind with rentable group rooms which were so prevalent within the nightlife of Japan and most fictional properties, such as this one, derived from its culture. Even standing outside, Pan could hear the muffled musical merriment echoing from within its halls. A steady stream of people were coming and going through its wide and welcoming front door.

"It's Saturday night," Bra said, turning back to Pan. "This place is gonna be just popping with people! Let's see if we can't work our way into a group, huh? Shouldn't be a hard feat for two pretty faces to accomplish, am I right?"

Pan sighed, defeated. "Okay, why not?"

"That's the spirit!" Bra moved around and began nudging Pan from behind towards the door. "Let's go pay our entrance fee, then see who we ca-OOF!"

Neither of them had been looking where they were going, so it wasn't surprising that on their way in, they bumped into someone on their way out. All three parties each staggered back a few steps and then addressed each other in fumbled confusion.

"Oh, I'm sorry," the newcomer said in a young male voice. "I wasn't paying atten-"

He suddenly stopped, at the same moment which Pan looked up to identify him.

"Selzer!"

Indeed, it was Pan's main squeeze standing there in the doorway. Similarly dressed for an evening out on the town, he reached over to help Pan maintain her balance. Despite his helpfulness, his face was flushed red and wore an expression of panicked surprise.

"W-what are you doing here?" He inquired.

"I've been spending the day with a friend," she replied. "Hey, why are you here all by yourself? You should join us, we were just about to-"

Suddenly, another teenage girl emerged from the facility. She was a stereotypical 'it girl,' dressed in far too little clothing and wearing far too much makeup for a girl of only fifteen or sixteen. She was immediately followed and joined by a half-dozen more teenagers, consisting of both girls with all the same things going on as her and burly boys who looked like they would be more comfortable using their voices for chanting football plays than singing. Selzer's choice of company was, in and of itself, not really a problem, if not just a matter of bad taste. What _was_ a problem was that the first girl decided to cozy up right against Selzer's back and gently wrap her arms around his torso, as she looked over and glared at Pan.

'Heeey Selz'r sweetie," she slurred, her speech evidently impeded to some degree by alcohol. "Who's this?"

"Uuuhhh..."

"Hey, Selzer, sweetie," Pan mockingly repeated, crossing her arms in annoyance. "Who's this?"

"I, uuhhh, um..."

"Oh hey," one of the other girls showed up. "Is this that infamous girl you guys told us about?"

"Yeah, that's her," one of the boys confirmed. "It's Pan, the ultimate tomboy!"

"Aw, she'z a lot cuter n' you told us, Selzer," said an inebriated boy. "I'd have taken the dare myself if I'd known she was act'lly pretty!"

"Dare?" Pan said, now exhibiting more confusion than anger. "What do they mean, 'dare?' Selzer, what's going on?"

"Well, uh, don't get mad, but," he nervously responded. "These guys from the team kind of put me up to asking you out."

"..."

"There were rumors going around that you were stronger than anyone else in school, and, well..."

"We promised him that if he cu'd last three dates without gettin' put in thur hospital," another buzzed boy proudly boasted. "That we'd give him a swell night out on the town to celebrate!"

"Selzer, you..." Pan was staring down at the ground. "... Actually went along with this?"

"Pan, I-"

"You led me on? Tricked me into thinking you actually liked me?" Her hands clenched into fists.

"I didn't mean-"

"And then you just went out and hung around with these morons and got flirty with their dumb floozies like it was nothing?"

"Hey," tipsy girl number two protested. "Who're you callin'-"

"Aw, don't get upset now," the lead jock jeeringly comforted her. "It's no big deal, right? I mean, from the looks of it," he glanced at Bra. "You're better off as the man of any relationship anyway."

"Pfft," Bra huffed, crossing her arms. "You wish." Something then caught her attention, and she took one good look at Pan. Calmly and carefully, she took a few steps back.

"Now then," the moron continued. "Just mosey along and try not to kill anyone on your way home, okay?" He reached out to place a hand on Pan's shoulder. But suddenly, in the blink of an eye, his entire arm was immobilized as Pan reached up and grabbed it with her opposite hand. She raised her head, revealing that although her eyes were tearing up, they were accompanied by a large and sadistic grin.

"Too bad."

A mere two minutes later, the beat-down was over. All four boys, Selzer included, lay on the sidewalk in a bruised, bloodied, and groaning pile. The girls were ducked away in a corner, shivering in fear. Several close bystanders looked on in shock and bemused curiosity. Somebody took a picture.

Right in the middle of it all, standing over the pained heap, was Pan. Her hands were only just beginning to ease up and relax from being tight fists, and her enraged, quickened breathing began to slow down as her anger faded. The look on her face steadily shifted from boiling rage to longing sadness, as her gaze was fixed on Selzer at the top of the pile.

Bra stood off to the side, unsure what to do. She'd had her share of falling-outs with members of the opposite sex before, but so far none that ended with them aching for an emergency room. She carefully began walking up to her friend, one arm outstretched to lay on her shoulder. But she stopped when, from behind, she barely glimpsed a tear running down the side of Pan's cheek. A few more seconds, and Pan was noticeably sniffing, her lips quivering, on the verge of breaking down and crying. Before Bra could address this, an invisible wave of Ki burst out from Pan as she powered up. As Bra stumbled backwards a bit to catch her balance, Pan rocketed into the sky, not looking back in the slightest as she climbed higher and higher, eventually blasting off in flight back towards home at full speed.

Bra remained there, alone and befuddled. It was already obvious that their evening out had been cut short, but she hadn't expected to be left behind so abruptly. Though, reflecting on it, she couldn't really blame Pan for taking off like that. She'd probably do the same thing in such a situation... if she knew how to fly.

Driving would have to suffice instead. Bra calmly produced her capsule case from within her purse and removed a single capsule from it. A click of the button, a light toss, a puff of smoke, and a hover-scooter was ready and waiting for her. She mounted it, started it up, and turned to the miserable group of treacherous teenagers.

"Well," she remarked. "It's been fun."

With that, she turned the throttle and began driving.

* * *

Not too far away, at Gohan and Videl's modestly-sized house in Satan City's eastern suburbs, something was brewing. It was beef stew.

ChiChi gently stirred the piping hot contents of the pot on the stove, simultaneously keeping an eye on not only the pork roast in the oven, but also her pint-sized husband, who was sneaking about and trying to steal bits of food wherever he could. At present, he thought she couldn't see him as he reached up towards a basket of freshly-baked biscuits on an adjacent counter to try snatching one. Without skipping a beat, ChiChi swiftly removed the metal ladle from the stew and smacked Goku's hand with it.

"Ow!"

Having been submerged in boiling broth not even a second before, the metal utensil was hot to the touch, making Goku's punishment all the more severe. While it was nothing that would seriously injure him, it carried enough of a sting to convince him to give up his greedy campaign... for now. He sat off in a corner of the kitchen, tending to his hand and pouting.

"Be patient, Goku."

"Aw, but I'm hungry _now!"_

"Well, you'll have to wait anyway," ChiChi remarked, opening the oven to take a glance at the roast. "We're feedin' more people than usual tonight again, so we need to save _all_ the food for the actual meal. No sneakin' bites ahead of time like you always do."

"Bra and Pan won't be out much longer," said Gohan as he entered from the dining room and began gathering silverware from a cabinet. "Goten and his 'friend' should get here at about the same time, too."

"Oh yes, another one o' them city girls he's always playin' around with, no doubt," ChiChi scoffed, eliciting an unseen rolling of the eyes from Videl in the next room. "I gotta say it's certainly taken long enough for him to introduce us t' this one."

"Cuz' you keep scarin' all the other girls away," Goku grumbled. ChiChi responded by whacking him with the hot ladle yet again, this time on the head. Ignoring his pained whining, she rinsed it off and returned to tending the stew.

"You should be a little less picky," Videl said as she entered in place of her husband, retrieving the basket of biscuits. "Someone other than me's got to pick up the slack with giving you grandkids."

"Well, no point havin' 'em at all if they're just gonna be raised rowdy an' uncouth," ChiChi continued to lecture. "None of these floozy city girls Goten's dated have had any good character, I'll tell you-"

Goku suddenly perked up and raised his head in attention.

"Hey, speakin' of rowdy girls, what's Pan doing?"

Gohan, having just re-entered the room on another errand, noticed it as well. "What's she doing flying home so early? And Bra's not with her either..."

At that moment, their Ki-sensed suspicions were confirmed, as the WHOOSH sound of Pan flying in and touching down could be heard from the back yard. Pan burst into the kitchen through the back door, her head hung low, and she charged through the dining room, into the living room, and then stomped up the stairs. A loud THUD resonated through the entire house as she slammed the door to her room shut behind her.

All were quiet for a moment, until a distinct infantile bawling began emanating from the living room couch.

"Oh great," Videl said, moving off to tend to its source. "She woke Gosan up..."

"Well, that was odd," Gohan noted.

"It looked like she was crying," Goku said, still sitting on the floor near the back door.

"Are you sure?" Videl asked, entering the room with Gosan in her arms, bouncing and patting him in an attempt to null his crying, with limited success.

"Yeah," Goku replied. "I got a pretty good look at her face from down here when she came in." He tilted his head. "Maybe she's cryin' cause of whatever happened to her hair..."

"I guess if she's that upset," ChiChi remarked, ignoring Goku's silliness. "That'd explain why she up an' left Bra behind."

"Speakin' of Bra," Goku said as he straightened himself up. "I guess I'd better go an' get her." He put two fingers to his forehead in concentration to track down Bra's Ki, and a second later vanished via Instant Movement.

For a minute or so, all was quiet. Standing in the dining room, Gohan stared pensively up in the direction of Pan's room. His fine-tuned Saiyan hearing let him pick up on her muffled sniffling and crying. "Should we go talk to her?" He mused.

"Nah," Videl replied. "Not yet, anyway. She probably wants to be left alone for now."

"That's true," ChiChi put in. "Wait 'til after dinner. She's so much like her grandpa that givin' her food will put her in a better mood for sure."

"Oh, is the food ready?" Goku remarked, suddenly back among them, standing in the dining room with Bra. He rushed towards the kitchen.

"No, not yet," ChiChi firmly insisted, blocking his way and holding up the ladle again as if it were a fiery sword. "We're not eating 'til Goten gets here."

"Oh, Bra," Gohan said, relieved. "Sorry about Pan darting off on you like that. Glad to see you're okay."

"Pssh," Bra said, putting on a smug face and proudly flipping back her hair. "I'm no train-aholic like you other Saiyans, but that doesn't mean I'm in any danger from normal people."

"I guess not," Gohan said, smiling. He then returned to his serious tone. "So... what happened with her, anyway?"

"Bra told me Pan got her heart broken real bad," Goku blatantly informed everyone. "That sounds serious. Should we maybe take her to a doctor? Or to Dende?"

"Dad, that's not what... Never mind."

"Oh no," Videl noted, having finally succeeded in quieting down Gosan. "That's the worst thing for a girl her age, especially since she doesn't have much luck with boys to begin with..." She suddenly put her hand to her mouth. "Oops, she can probably hear me..."

"I'll go see if she wants some company," Bra said, heading up the stairs. "This sort of stuff is my specialty, after all."

A short while later, the front door finally opened, and Goten entered and waved to everyone. A pretty, brunette girl wearing a nice casual dinner dress entered behind him, glancing around the house curiously.

"Goten!" Goku eagerly rushed over to his youngest son and grabbed his arm. "Great to see you," he cheered as he forcibly dragged him from the door into the dining room. "Now we can eat!"

"Dad! Wait a second, I have to-"

"Foooood!"

"Hi," Gohan decided to be the one with manners, and extended a hand to Goten's guest. "You must be Palice. I'm Gohan, Goten's brother."

"Ah, hello!" She enthusiastically responded, shaking his hand. "Goten's told me a lot about you. Like how smart you are. You teach sciences at the University, don't you?"

"Yes," Gohan said, trying not to come off as proud. He then waved over Videl, who also greeted Palice with the hand that wasn't occupied by the bottom of a snoozing baby. "This is my wife, Videl, and our littlest one, Gosan."

"THE Videl?" Palice beamed. "Mr. Satan's daughter?"

"Blast, you've discovered my secret identity!" Videl joked. "Don't tell anyone." This elicited a chuckle from Palice, during which Videl took a closer look at her. "You know, I could swear we've met somewhere before..."

"C'mon guys, I'm starving!" Goku whined, already seated in his spot at the table and fidgeting around. Next to him sat a flustered and visibly quite embarrassed Goten. "Talk while eating!"

"Looks like dinner's served whether we're ready or not," Gohan noted, as ChiChi was in fact finally waving for him to come help put everything out.

"Go ahead," Videl urged him. "I'll put Gosan in bed and fetch the girls."

A minute later, all present were seated and starting to dig in, and Videl came down the steps with Bra and Pan in tow. The latter still looked down in the dumps, but nonetheless, after taking her seat between Goku and Gohan, also began feasting just as vigorously as ever. Perhaps a little MORE so, in fact.

"Well," Gohan remarked. "Your appetite's still fine, it seems."

Pan simply continued to munch in silence as Goten spoke up.

"Well, uh," he said. "Palice, you already met Gohan and Videl." He gestured to them, then around the rest of the table. "This is my niece Pan, her friend Bra, my mom ChiChi, and my dad Goku."

"Your father?" Palice halted her fork midway to her mouth, as she leaned forward a bit and strained her eyes staring at the pint-sized patriarch. "The same Son Goku from the tournament? How is he a little kid? What happened?"

"Um, yeah," Goten said, scratching his head, wondering how best to explain. "You see, there's these things called Dragon Balls..."

"I got turned into a kid by this old trolly midget dude who I used t' fight back when I was little... the first time," Goku interrupted. "It's pretty much the biggest effect he's ever managed to have on me, come t' think of it."

Palice merely stared for a moment, before suddenly smiling. "You're adorable!" Goku chuckled and fidgeted in gleeful pride.

"So, Miss Palice," ChiChi spoke up. Everyone at the table, Goku included, gulped in anxiety. This was it. ChiChi's trial of worth. Crunch time. "You seem like quite a fine, polite lady," she said. "Much more pleasant than the usual girls Goten brings home."

"Mother..." Goten protested meekly.

"Well, I have to admit," Palice said. "I was brought up rather strictly and properly. I was a bit sheltered as a child, too. Goten's shown me a lot of fun things I never knew existed."

There was an awkward momentary pause.

"Not like that!" An embarrassed Goten clarified. Bra chuckled, and Palice simply looked bewildered.

"Sheltered?" ChiChi remarked. "My, what kind of upbringin' did you have?"

"I lived mostly on our family estate," Palice explained. "Aside from the occasional social outing, I spent most of my time at home being tutored. My mother passed away when I was little, so my father dedicated a lot of his time and money to my education."

"Your father?"

"Oh, of course, I'm sorry," Palice continued. "My father is Temple Chateau ..."

"Mr. Chateau?" ChiChi suddenly perked up. "The world-famous real estate tycoon?"

"Yes."

"Oh, of course!" Videl noted. "Now I remember. My dad was a guest at his charity banquet a few years ago, and I-"

"So," ChiChi interrupted. "You're really rich?"

"... Yes?"

"Wow!" ChiChi was overjoyed and eagerly glanced back and forth between Palice and Goten. "So how soon are you two gettin' married?"

Palice blushed and held her cheeks in embarrassment. "Oh dear," she squealed. "I, uh... really hadn't thought about... with Goten, I mean... I..."

"Mother!" Goten protested. "D-don't!"

"Well," ChiChi stated unapologetically. "I only wanna make sure you're taken good care of, Goten."

"We're just friends..." Goten whined as Palice continued to blush profusely.

"Hmmph," Pan scoffed. "How nice for you." She said no more and continued eating, now seemingly more pissed off than depressed.

"So, um," Palice put her trained social skills to work on changing the subject. "Goku, Gohan, Goten, Gosan... That's quite an interesting naming convention..."

"It goes back even further, actually," Goku piped in. "Gohan's named for my ol' Grandpa, though it wasn't my first idea t' do that." He leaned forward to address Gohan. "I wanted to give you a really _cool_ name, like... Xicor, or something. But your mom wouldn't let me. She said it sounded evil."

"Isn't it wonderful?" ChiChi beamed, now more eager than ever to become best friends with their guest. "I think it's so nice, tying all the boys of the family together like that. You'll do the same with your children for me, won'tcha?"

"MOTHER!"

"Oh dear..."

After another hour or so of dinner rife with lively conversation both awkward and amusing, and then another hour of cleanup and further socializing, the evening was at last coming to a close. Goten and Palice now stood outside the front door, Goten's capsule sky car waiting to ferry them both. ChiChi stood in the doorway, more chipper than ever as she bid the two farewell.

"Thank you for the wonderful dinner, Mrs. ChiChi," Palice said. "It was nice to meet you all."

"Oh, it was my pleasure, dear," ChiChi replied gleefully. "Have a good night, and make sure you two aren't up too late!"

"M-mother! Please!" Goten stammered, before motioning for Palice to move along. "I'll just... bring you home, okay?"

"Alright," Palice complied. Another minute later, and they'd taken off into the night sky, back towards the city. ChiChi closed the door behind her, heading back into the living room where most everyone else was waiting. Inside, Goku lay upside-down on the couch playing with Gosan. Upon noticing ChiChi's entrance, he lifted the giggling infant up off of his face and spoke to her.

"Ready t' go?" He asked, to which she nodded cheerfully. Goku grasped Gosan bodily, floated up and turned himself around in midair just above the couch, then playfully dropped the happy youngster safely onto the cushions. He touched down on the floor and trotted over to ChiChi as Gohan and Videl approached the two of them to likewise give their goodbyes.

"Thanks for helping, mother," Gohan said, giving her a hug. "You didn't really have to do all that."

"Oh no, no, I was glad to help."

Goku glanced towards the stairs. "So Pan never came back down from her room after dinner, huh?"

"No," Videl noted. "Don't worry, we'll cheer her up one way or another."

"I sure hope so," said Bra. "Otherwise it's gonna be a lousy sleepover."

"Okay then, we'll get going," Goku said. "I'll see you guys on launch day!" He took ChiChi's hand with one of his own, then put two fingers of the other one to his forehead.

"There's Oob, just as planned. Bye!"

In the blink of an eye, Goku and ChiChi had vanished from sight, instantly reappearing off in their own home hundreds of miles away.

"Well," Videl said, turning to Gohan. "You'd better get up there and talk to her."

"What?" Gohan stuttered. "Why me?"

"Because she's more attached to you," she explained. "Besides, I've gotta put Gosan to bed now, since your dad wore him out for us." With that being that, and not giving Gohan a chance to protest further, she scooped up the toddler, whom had previously been dragging himself across the couch in a tired daze, and carried him into the living room's adjacent nursery.

Gohan stood still for a moment, then shrugged. He might as well. He casually walked up the living room stairs, emerging into the small hallway of their house's second floor. He immediately turned to his left to face the door to Pan's room and gently knocked on it.

"Pan?" He said. "Can I come in?"

A squealish grunt of affirmation resounded from the other side of the door, which Gohan then opened and entered.

They say the appearance of your personal space tells a lot about who you are, and this certainly rang true with Pan. Stereotypically "girly" items like makeup, stuffed animals, a huge pile of apparently new clothing, and posters of various pretty-boy pop stars were few and far between. In contrast, her room was much more tomboyish and reflective of her active, unfeminine lifestyle, such as the various awards and trophies for martial arts adorning her walls and shelves, some exercise equipment, and the distinctive tan and dark-blue uniform which she shared with her grandfather and Oob hanging from a special hook on the underside of a shelf.

Pan herself was currently lying belly-down on her bed, face buried in one of her pillows. Gohan quietly and calmly sat down next to her.

"Pancake?"

She jumped a little bit, then turned her head around to shoot him an annoyed look.

"You haven't called me that since I was ten years old," she said.

"That's right," Gohan said, patting her head. "You were convinced you were a grown-up once you hit the double-digits, and on your birthday you insisted we just start calling you Pan."

She gave a quick scoff. "Didn't stop Grandpa Mark..."

"So, Bra kinda told us what happened today," Gohan said. "You wanna talk about it?"

"... I guess..."

Gohan stood up and walked over to the wide bedroom window. He opened up the screen and stuck his head out. He then cupped both hands to his mouth and called into the cool night air.

"Kinto'uuuuun!"

A moment later, after the initial cries of, "Shut up!" from the neighbors, a certain, unmistakable, bubbly popping sound resonated from the sky above. A few more seconds, and a puffy little yellow cloud had spiraled down and parked itself right next to the window. It floated in place, awaiting worthy passengers for only a moment before Gohan vaulted out the window to stand on it. He sat down cross-legged, then turned to Pan, who now stood watching in the window. He motioned for her to sit, and she complied, hopping out and settling down on his lap.

"Kinto'un," Gohan said. "Let's go for a ride over the city!"

The little cloud replied and suddenly darted up into the air. It climbed higher and higher for a good minute, weaving and swaying its way upwards. Its passengers didn't flinch at the high speeds, as not only were they used to it, but it paled in comparison to the velocities at which they could travel on their own power. Eventually, Kinto'un leveled out and began a gentle flight over Satan City. At 10 o'clock P.M., the entire metropolis was lit up and lively, glowing and blinking all over as a visual beacon of the life and activity with which it was teeming. Kinto'un steadily cruised at just over the level of its skyscrapers, allowing his two passengers to talk.

"Your hair looks nice."

"Hmm..."

"So," Gohan inquired, kindly grasping her by the shoulders. "What happened?"

"Boys are jerks."

"We're not ALL that bad."

"Well, MOST boys are," Pan grumbled. "They're insensitive idiots who only care about themselves." She grabbed and pulled in her knees up to her face. "I thought Selzer really liked me, but he was only going out with me on some stupid dare that some jerk muscle-heads put him up to."

"Hmm..."

"I'm tired of being treated so weird by other people," Pan sniffled. "I mean, I don't wanna stop being special or anything. It's lots of fun training with Grandpa Goku and Oob, and flying around on a cloud, and playing with Jeeny, and all that. But," she sighed. "I wish I could get away from 'normal' people for a while. I wanna forget about what they think..."

"I'm thinking you could use a vacation," Gohan mused.

"I can already fly anywhere in the world I want to," Pan said. "It wouldn't really do any good."

The two of them continued to cruise on Kinto'un in silence for a short while, each in their own thoughts. Gohan's, however, proved more productive. In fact, he mentally kicked himself for not thinking of it sooner. He leaned forward and cheerfully talked to Pan again.

"I think I've got an idea!"


	10. To Infinity and Beyond

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Ten - _"To Infinity and Beyond"_

"Wait a sec," Videl remarked. She quickly picked at the insides of her ears as though cleaning them out. Leaning forward, she then spoke to Gohan again. "Repeat that for me?"

"Well, um," Gohan meekly replied. "I said, I think we should have Pan go along into outer space with Trunks and my father."

The couple sat at their dining room table, opposite each other so as to better carry on the conversation. It'd been about an hour since everyone had departed after dinner earlier that evening, and Gohan and Pan had only returned from their quick nighttime flight but a few minutes ago. While Pan had excitedly rushed back up to her room to chatter about the prospect with Bra, Gohan had gotten Videl's attention for a somewhat more serious discussion of the idea. With the proposition having now been made perfectly clear, Videl leaned back in her chair and folded her arms adamantly.

"Are you sure?" She inquired, seeming a bit puzzled. "But what about school? This semester just barely ended, but she'd still be missing a whole lot when the next school year starts up!"

"I'm sure she could make it up," Gohan replied. "I had a pretty odd school schedule when I was a kid, but I turned out just fine. Maybe her teachers can even give her some stuff to work on while she's away..."

"This isn't like you," she said. "You're usually the scholarly one, concerned about her education more than anything else... "

"And you're usually the fun one," he protested. "Don't you think it's a good idea to take a vacation once in a while, too?"

"Hmm," she pondered. "No, I don't like it. Not this time. It's too much, too soon."

Gohan gazed at her, studying her expression closely. Her arms were clenched together, but obviously nervous and fidgety. Her jaw was clamped shut, biting her lip as if holding herself back.

"... Are you sure?"

"... Yes," she answered, squirming around a bit. "End of story."

Gohan sighed, knowing when he was defeated, or at least when to act like he was. He turned, casting his gaze into the living room, where Pan and Bra were situated with their sleeping bags on the floor, watching TV. "Sorry, Pan," he said. "It was worth a shot."

"Okay," she replied, obviously trying hard not to look disappointed as she shot him a cute smile. "Thanks anyway, Papa."

"Well, since that's settled," Videl said. "I think it's time we all went to bed. You're spending the day helping Bulma tomorrow, right? Gotta be up bright and early for that."

"Yeah, I suppose," Gohan said. The two of them bid the teenage duo good night, then moseyed on up to their own room...

* * *

The time was now 1:12 A.M.

Gohan glanced back and forth from the clock to the slumbering form of his wife next to him in the bed. Slowly and quietly, he slipped out from underneath the covers, stood up, and began tip-toeing towards the door. Reaching out, turning the handle, and then opening it, Gohan winced as the door's hinges squeaked quite loudly, and he mentally cursed himself for not oiling them like he'd kept meaning to but constantly forgetting to do for the last week.

"Mmmm... Gohan?" His concern was realized, as Videl had evidently awoken, and turned herself over to glance at him through half-closed, sleepy eyes. "Wha's wronnng?"

"Uh, nothing," Gohan feigned. "I can't sleep. Thinking too much about the ship and all tomorrow. I'm gonna go for a quick fly to clear my head."

"Mmmmkay," she moaned, seemingly content with his answer. She rolled back over and once again fell asleep.

Gohan mouthed an inaudible "sorry" as he stepped out and tenderly closed the door behind him. Quiet as a mouse, and suppressing his Ki for good measure, he made his way down and across the short upstairs hallway to Pan's room. The door was thankfully already ajar, and he slinked his way inside. Not needing to turn on the lights thanks to a combination of his superior eyesight and the moon's illumination of the area, he crept over to Pan's shelf on the far wall and reached up to the topmost point. There he procured her wheeled-and-handled travel suitcase, left in a prominent area for the various training-slash-camping trips she regularly went on with Goku and Oob.

He laid it down next to her dresser, which he opened up and hastily began transferring clothes from. Being distinctly male and thus not entirely knowing what matched up with what, Gohan simply tried to pack what he could remember as being her favorites, along with plenty of socks, undergarments, and various other necessities. Lastly, he laid eyes on her proud blue Gi uniform, hanging under the shelf...

Suddenly, his attention was snatched away by a noise from outside the room. He and Videl's own bedroom door was re-opening. He calmly kept himself quiet and listened at first, as he sensed and heard Videl exit the room, figuring she merely needed to use the bathroom or something after being woken up.

To his surprise, she began moving in the opposite direction he expected... straight towards Pan's room. Gohan panicked for a moment, before hastily hiding himself and the half-packed bag in Pan's closet. Despite being cramped, he was able to quickly fit himself inside and close the shuttered closet door as quietly as he could. Just in time, too, as merely a second after he shut himself away, he watched through one of the slits in the door as Videl enter the room.

She poked her head in first, glancing around a bit, before entering and strolling over to Pan's small bedside lamp which she quickly switched on, what with lacking one of Gohan's aforementioned advantages. She turned around and reached up to the same spot on the shelf as Gohan did just moments prior to find it empty.

"Huh, that's weird," she whispered to herself. She began scurrying about the room as if searching for something, something which anyone, Gohan especially, could easily guess. After about a minute, she walked over and opened the closet door as the next leg of her search.

"Gohan?"

"Uh," he said. "Hi."

She stood there, crossed her arms, and studied the situation. "And what, exactly," she interrogated, "are you doing in our daughter's room at almost 1:30 in the morning?"

"I could ask the same thing of you," he replied, smirking.

"I-I..." She looked flushed. "I was looking for you, of course."

"Oh really?" He said. "Expecting to find me on the top shelf?" He stepped out from the closet, suddenly procuring the suitcase, from which several unmentionables fell out. "Hiding in THIS, maybe?"

"What are you..." She turned away. "Quit talking nonsense!"

"Come on, admit it," Gohan teased, wise to her plot by now. "We both had the same idea, didn't we?"

She sighed, sitting down on Pan's bed. "Yeah," she confessed, pouting.

Gohan sat down next to her and put one arm around her shoulder. "I'm not surprised. I could kind of tell from how over-zealous you were in refusing earlier. Why was that, really?"

"Oh, I don't know," she mused. "Maybe you coming up with something so crazy out of the blue... I didn't expect it, and it threw me off." She shuffled her feet. "When you think about it, we kind of balance each other out with Pan. Normally you're the stuffy, strict parent, while I'M the fun-loving, free-spirited one, and I know that, so I'm always trying to be a little more responsible..." She looked up and met Gohan's raised eyebrow with a playful smile. "I guess I over-compensated."

Gohan pulled her in against him. "I guess I'm over-compensating a bit too, maybe." He said. "I've seen how stressed Pan's been lately, so I found myself looking for any way to cheer her up. This might be a little extreme, though..."

The two of them sat there quietly for a minute.

"... So," Videl said. "Almost a whole year, huh?"

"Yeah."

Another minute.

"... I'm gonna miss her."

"Me, too."

Gohan stood, reaching over and picking the suitcase back up. "Let's finish packing this so we can get back to bed."

"And eventually," Videl said, grinning playfully at him, "to sleep."

* * *

"Pan... Paaan, wake up, sweetie..."

The time was now 6:48 A.M. The two teenage demi-Saiyan girls had only been asleep for roughly the past four hours, having stayed up late for TV-watching, snack-eating, one-sided recollection of encounters with members of the opposite sex, and so many various other activities other than sleeping which teenage girls tend to do at so-called "sleepovers." So when they were now roused at this relatively early hour, they were none too pleased.

"Oh damn it," Bra moaned, ignoring Videl's nudging and rolling over. Pan was somewhat more responsive, blinking a bit before sitting up in her floor-situated futon to glance around groggily. She was momentarily confused as to why her parents, and notably Grandpa Goku, were all gathered there in the living room and focused on her. Goku in particular must have been excited enough for all of them, as Videl and Gohan appeared exhausted.

"Hey, Pan, this is awesome!" Goku stood on the couch, bouncing around so gleefully that it seemed he might start floating in the air without even trying to. "We're gonna have so much fun!"

"Hhrruuh?" Pan was still neither entirely awake nor sure what was going on. "Whaddya mean...?"

"He means," Videl said, stifling a yawn, before suddenly procuring Pan's suitcase and presenting it to her. "That your bag is already packed, and he's waiting to take both you and your Dad over to to Bulma's."

"Huh?" Goku commented, now also confused. "No, I meant she's goin' into space with us."

"Yes, Goku, I was just... never mind."

And just like that, Pan was wide awake.

* * *

Trunks regretted coming in to the office at all today. It was just too painful.

For more than a week prior, he'd been using his hands for something other than signing papers and typing reports, and he'd loved it. Working up close and personal, fiddling around with the inner workings of a spaceship, was much more his preferred use of time. Yet, his responsibilities as Capsule Corporation's heir and vice-president were inescapable, and he ultimately couldn't put them off any longer. So there he was, during the home stretch, doing a week's worth and more of paper-signing and report-typing all at once within one day - the "more" in this case being steps taken for dividing up his tasks for the next almost-year so they could be properly handled by his mother and other high-ranking company officials. He envied his mother in particular, being there back in the hangar at home, getting to personally put the finishing touches on the cutting-edge vessel. His only self-consolation and motivation came from constantly reminding himself that, come tomorrow morning, it'd be _him_ setting out for an adventure in outer space, and not any of them.

Evening was approaching now, and the impending conclusion of the work day just made him all the more bored and excited at the same time. He was speed-reading like a demon, mentally scrolling through pages, adding notes where needed, and occasionally jotting down his signature at the end when required. He was averaging one document every two minutes now, surely a personal record. Just a few left...

Shortly thereafter, in walked Marron, Trunks' childhood family friend and ever-dutiful secretary. She tiptoed around in her usual meek fashion, straightening things here and there and generally tidying up the office for its impending non-use in the coming months. She kept sneaking glances at Trunks, who continued reading, flipping, and signing so fast that you'd expect his fingers to catch on fire.

"Done!" Elated, Trunks finally finished up with the last bit of paper-based business, flipping the packet into the air a foot above his desk before solidly planting it on the "complete" pile with a certain theatrical flair of triumph. He quickly stood up, retrieved his jacket from the back of his chair, and hurriedly put it on. Marron picked up the stack of papers, tapping them on the desk to straighten them out, then clutched them to her chest for safekeeping as she addressed the soon-to-be space cowboy.

"That took long enough, didn't it?"

"No kidding," Trunks replied, looting his desktop and drawers for various small personal items to take home. "It was freakin' grueling, given the circumstances."

"I'm sure," she mused, watching him. A short minute later, he had concluded his business and began swiftly making his way towards the exit. "Now just one more night, and it's off into the wild blue yonder," he enthusiastically proclaimed.

"A whole year, huh?" Marron said quietly as she followed him over to the door. "I'm gonna miss you..." Her voice trailed off during those last couple of words.

"Hmm?" Trunks turned around, having unintentionally tuned her out. "What'd you say?"

"Oh! Nothing," Marron blushed a bit and perked up. "H-have a good trip!"

Trunks nodded, gave a quick two-fingered salute, and proceeded out into the hallway. In the blink of an eye, he was off this floor and out of sight completely. Marron glanced back into the sunset-lit office, giving a quick sigh before switching off the lights and closing the door behind her.

* * *

"Paaaan," a squeaky, intrusive voice beckoned. "Paaaaaaaan..."

The time was now 6:23 A.M. On the fifth floor of Capsule Corporation's home base and family estate, in the same girl's bedroom as described in the beginning of the previous chapter, and for the second time in as many days, Pan was being nudged and roused from her slumber WAY too early. What did the people around her have against sleep? She rolled over and forced open her eyes in order to identify the dastardly culprit. As she suspected from the voice, it was Goku.

"Grandpa," she groaned. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Uh, no," Goku said. "But I waited 'til the sun was up, and that means it's morning, right?"

"No," Pan angrily muttered. "Once school is over, 'morning' doesn't start until nine." She rolled back over. "Does Grandma know you're up this early?"

"Hahaha, no," Goku gleefully informed her. "I wanted to surprise her, too. She's next."

"Yeah," Pan mumbled, drifting back to sleep. "May wanna rethink that..."

* * *

Two hours later, sleep was the last thing on the minds of anyone in the compound; though, on a related note, some were still nursing ideas about pummeling a certain someone into the ground. The sense of excitement and business built to an all-time peak from what it had been for the past two weeks. The work was done, and now came the payoff. At long last, it was launch day.

This purposed pandemonium was purported primarily for three particular people. One of which was presently partaking in the panic, procuring pleasure in preparation for the portending pilgrimage.

The other two were eating breakfast.

Or to be more specific, one was eating her own breakfast, while the other was eating not only his own, but whatever amount of anyone else's he could sneak. This illicit activity was, for the third time in ten minutes, thwarted by his ever-vigilant and responsible spouse seated immediately to his right, who, with trained swiftness like lightning itself, reached out to smack his hand.

"Goku," ChiChi scolded. "Keep your hands t' yourself."

"Aw," Goku sulked, proceeding to pick up and idly munch on one piece from his own share of bacon, the last bit on his own plate.

"Oh my," said Panchy. Bulma's mother, the always-bubbly and energetic, yet _supposedly_ elderly, matriarch of the family was there at the table as well, tenderly picking at her own food. "Goku, dear, you're ever so... _energetic,_ so early in the morning!"

"This is early?" He replied. "I thought when I woke Pan up was early."

"That wasn't just early," Pan complained. "That was crazy."

"Tee hee," Panchy giggled. She reached across the table and pinched Goku's cheek. "My, you've gotten so cute again, Goku, just like I remember you all those years ago! Whatever are we going to do with you!"

"I'm just so excited," he complained, while ignoring the abuse to his face and still glancing at Pan's half-finished serving to his left. "I dunno what to do with myself right now but eat..."

"So go fly around the world a few times or something," Pan said, catching his wandering eye and threatening him with a fork. "Instead of picking at other people's food."

"I wouldn't have'ta if I had my thirds already," he whined.

"They're not just making _your_ food," remarked Bra, who was seated across from Pan and next to her own eccentric Grandmother. "There's other Saiyans around here for the staff to feed, especially-"

"Vegeta!" Panchy suddenly exclaimed. "Good morning, dear!"

Indeed, at that moment the proud Saiyan prince entered the kitchen, dressed in a distinctly un-regal wardrobe of sweatpants and a tank-top. Having just finished his daily morning training session, he was on the prowl for his own breakfast. He paused, appearing confused upon seeing several more people gathered in the kitchen than usual.

"What in the..." It took a moment for his memory to kick in. "Oh, right." He sat down at the table's end, adjacent to Bra. "So where's mine?"

"Right here, Mr. Vegeta," a tinny voice responded. A modestly-sized service robot entered from the kitchen, carrying two large trays of food in its skinny yet sturdy appendages. It placed one first in front of Vegeta at his end of the table, then rolled its way over to Goku along the table's length, placing the second tray, which was indeed Goku's long-awaited third serving, in front of the pint-sized guest before exiting as quickly as it had entered. Both Saiyans began to dig in, taking notice of each other's portions.

"Looks like we both got about the same stuff, Vegeta," Goku pointed out.

"That's right," Vegeta replied. "It seems we did."

"You sure you can handle that much food at your age?" Goku continued, smirking.

"I don't know," Vegeta replied, returning the look. "Are _you_ sure you have room in that new wimpy little body of yours?"

"Only one way to find out!"

And just like that... it was on. The two worked their forks and spoons like jackhammers, mercilessly digging into their extraneous portions of food like hot shovels into a hill of butter. Pancakes, bacon, scrambled eggs, biscuits, various potato products, and all other sorts of standard breakfast fare suffered horrible, sloppy fates between the powerful and rapidly-flapping jaws of the two hungry Saiyans. Bit by bit, more of the multiple plates' surfaces became visible as the food atop them simply _disappeared_. Within moments, the victor of the contest had already been almost decided...

… When suddenly, they both lost. Simultaneously, each Saiyan participant suddenly fell victim to a tender but firm smack to the back of their head. Being so focused on the targets of their gluttony, they had failed to notice that they too had become targets, and thus had also failed to brace themselves. Though the blows came from beings who possessed a near-infinitely tiny fraction of their own power, the surprise nature of the "attack" caused both Saiyans' faces to shoot forward and messily plant themselves in the food.

"Goku!" ChiChi adamantly restated. "I already told you once t' mind your manners!"

"You too, Vegeta!"

The elder Saiyan somewhat-unwittingly complied by wiping his face off with a napkin as he turned around to face his assailant.

"Bulma!" He protested. "What the hell? You've never cared about how I eat!"

Behind him, with one hand placed on the back of the chair and the other playfully patting Vegeta's head, stood the middle-aged senior heiress and president of Capsule Corporation. She was dressed in loose work clothes, a tool belt slung around her waist. Her aged yet still attractive face bore not only a few oil smudges, but also a bright smile as she giggled at her husband's "adorable angry-face."

"I know," she chuckled. "But I thought I'd imitate ChiChi for a minute. It looked fun!"

"Ah, Bulma!" Goku, having removed the food from his own face in a somewhat more sloppy and gluttonous manner, also took notice of her. "How's it comin' along?"

She grinned at him and winked. "All done."

"Alright!" In what was surely a miracle among miracles, Goku no longer seemed to care about eating the food right in front of him, as he was completely overtaken with excitement, bouncing out of his chair towards Bulma. This rare anomaly only lasted for a split-second, as he reconsidered and then proceeded to grab his remaining biscuits to bring along. He ran past Bulma and over to the door through which she had entered. "Let's go, let's go, I wanna see it!"

"Be patient, Grandpa!" Pan remarked, though from her own hurried pace and facial expression as she got up out of her own chair, it was obvious that she was anxious as well. "You've waited two whole weeks, you can wait another minute..."

Figuring that breakfast was over, and most of them being at least partly-human with human appetites and thus having eaten their full anyway, the rest of those in the room likewise began to depart the room following Bulma and Goku. Vegeta, like Goku, reconsidered the idea of leaving uneaten food. He proceeded to quickly fashion a makeshift sandwich out of a biscuit, some eggs, and a few slices of bacon, before following along at the rear of the pack.

They all spent the next couple minutes steadily walking through the family home, with Bulma leading the way. As they traversed the hallways, atrium, and foyer, Goku excitedly chattered away, pestering Bulma with questions to which she gave no factual answer, only teasing him with ambiguity. Eventually, they crossed through a large lab and into the underground passage which led to the hangar. Seeing sunlight shining down ahead through a pair of wide service doors, Goku bolted ahead, running out into the wide open hangar. He stopped and gazed in awe as everyone caught up to him.

"Wow!"

There in the center of the open space, and with a few rays of the morning light beaming down upon it, stood a space ship in all its technological glory. Goku took off into the air and flew a couple quick laps around it.

"It's gotta be even bigger than the one I took to Namek!"

Indeed, its main hull was quite large. It was ovular and bulbous in shape, with a variety of smaller dome structures spotted around on its surface. A half-dozen of these were larger and colored a subdued golden yellow, extending around the lower-mid hemisphere of the hull. Above them, on the sides of the ship, were four slightly smaller glass ones, a pair on each side - evidently windows. A single, larger version of them was situated at the front of the vessel, and the largest one of all, with metal framework separating and reinforcing the individual glass panes, was perched neatly on the ship's summit. In line with these, on the front forward section of the ship like a "nose," was an outcropping module with a currently-closed hatch of some sort. A black-colored, solid-looking coating encompassed the top third of the bulb where the large windows stood, like some sort of large skullcap. The middle section along which the smaller windows lay was a standard light gray color, while the entire bottom half of the outer hull was a darker gray, and obviously made of stronger material, as if to give extra reinforcement to the innards it contained.

Immediately below the main "bulb" was a large, solid black outcropping, with the words "Capsule Corp" solidly displayed on each side in bold blue letters. It connected with a dark tan-colored structure, which extended outwards in the back and wrapped itself up, from the bottom and around the back end of the ship, before meeting with and and ending at the back end of the black plating on top. A hatch was embedded into the back, vertical end of it, while on its underside, a small cone-shaped rocket was fixed at an angle.

But the lower sections of the ship were possibly the most eye-catching. Jutting from the dome's bottom structure was a large rocket-engine assembly in the shape of a cutoff cone. But spread out around it, attached to a disc-like structure fixed above and encompassing part of the rocket, were a series of "legs." Totaling eight in all, and each with three segments divided by two joints, they were fixed in a pattern around the ship. There were four on each side of the vessel, spaced evenly while leaving small gaps in the exact forward and aft sections. At present, all eight legs were angled down, currently serving their primary purpose as landing struts against the hangar's floor.

The design of these appendages, combined with the structure of the upper sections, gave the ship as a whole a very distinct and recognizable appearance. Naturally, even Goku immediately picked up on it.

"It's a giant space-octopus!"

"Glad I'm not the only one who thinks so!" Called a familiar voice. Suddenly making himself known, standing atop the ship, was Trunks. He was evidently just as ready for launch as anyone, decked out in a comfortable but functional outfit, particularly a pair of sturdy boots, versatile cargo shorts, and a long-sleeved flight jacket, atop a plain black shirt, with the iconic "Capsule Corp" logo embroidered in miniature on the front over his heart and in a larger visage on its back.

In one fluid movement, he leaped from his high perch and landed neatly in front of the group, with Goku following suit. He crossed his arms and regarded the ship proudly. "There's a reason for it looking like this, though."

"That's right," Bulma said. "In fact, most about everything you can see from here is there for a reason." She looked everyone over, then thumbed at the ship. "Why don't I give you all the grand tour?"

"Sure!" Goku bolted forward towards the ship to get a closer look. Pan enthusiastically followed after him, as everyone else walked in its direction somewhat more calmly. Bulma began to speak as she pointed at sections of the ship.

"This here," she narrated, "is the X-7. It's the sturdiest, fastest, and all-around best space ship Capsule Corporation has ever produced! It was designed by my Dad, as his magnum opus in the field. It was half-built a few years ago... before he had that whole squirrel episode."

"I remember that," Goku said. "It was fun."

"Yes, I guess it was," she continued. "Anyway, after his passing, we went and finished it for this. Well, we say we created it, but in reality, it's a culmination of what we've studied from alien technology - like the pod ships that Goku and the other Saiyans used, Kami's Namekian home-ship, and even what was left of Freeza's ship, after Trunks blew it up."

"Huh?" Trunks seemed puzzled. "I blew up what, now?"

"No, not you," Bulma clarified. "The _other_ Trunks."

"...Oh."

Bulma pointed up to the "nose" of the ship. "That contains a bunch of different tools. First off, there's a cannon for clearing space debris or other obstacles. The controls for it are in the cockpit." Nobody noticed Trunks grinning deviously and wringing his hands at the prospect. "In addition to that," Bulma continued, "there are other things like a grappling arm, tow cable... and hoses. One for expelling waste water and another for taking in new, clean water." She sternly pointed at the entire fixture. "Do NOT get them mixed up."

"Eeew," Pan exclaimed. "Gross!"

As they rounded the side of the ship, Bulma now pointed to the various lower parts. "The appendages aren't just for landing," she noted. "They also have small thrusters in the tips, to help stabilize and steer while you're inside a planet's gravity. Then there are the two main rockets, the big one on the bottom being the primary one for traveling through space and hovering on a planet, but it'll work together with the smaller one to move you through the air. While you're shooting through space, the ship will actually be on its side."

"I don't really get it," Goku mused. "But... two big engines and a buncha smaller ones! Cool!"

"Not that it'll matter which way the ship is facing," Bulma said, as she pointed up towards the ship's bulbous side section. "Because those big yellow things on the side are the artificial gravity generators. You could be totally upside-down inside a planet's gravity, if you wanted, and still be standing on the floors."

"Why are they so big?" Bra asked, showing an uncharacteristic amount of interest. "I've seen other ships like this one and you could barely even see the gravity plates..."

"Heheh," Bulma teased. "You'll see when you get inside."

They reached the back end of the ship, where Bulma stood underneath the tan outcropping and pointed up. "Hey, Son, do you see that little red spot on the underside there? It's a button. Fly up and push it, please?"

"Okay!" He floated upwards, nearly thrice as high as anyone was tall, and pressed the large red button. In response, something inside the ship beeped and whirred, as suddenly the hatch on the back side folded itself outwards, pointing towards the ground at a slight incline. Embedded on its inner side was a ladder, and from within it extended out another, slightly narrower, ladder, which, altogether, were just long enough to touch down on the ground.

"Voila, there's your entrance," Bulma said, as she started climbing it, beckoning the group to follow her. They complied with haste, and in mere moments everyone was inside. The first area immediately inside was a bit underwhelming in appearance compared to the stylish-looking exterior. It had an industrial layout and decor, filled with various metal cabinets, along with large pieces of machinery along the walls and hatches on pretty much every surface. Towards the far end of the room, a single, slim metal pole extended up to the ceiling, and within the wall just beyond it, opposite the entrance, was a solitary heavy, thick-looking door. It had but one small, round window through which to peer to the space inside and a conspicuous computerized control panel in the wall next to it.

"This room may not look very nice," Bulma stated the obvious, "but it's probably the most important place in the whole ship. It's the maintenance room, and a lot of the floors and walls have removable panels for doing repairs on the engines and other systems." She waved at all the standalone pieces of equipment. "This stuff is all for use, too. There's the water recycler and heater over there, a fuel converter..."

"Oh," Panchy suddenly spoke up, noticing two particular items over to one side. "So THAT's where those extra laundry machines went!"

"What's in here?" Goku said. He and Pan were both straining and peering through the small portal into the room on the far side. "It's too dark, I can't see anythin' inside..."

"This," Bulma said, smiling as she walked over to join them, "was Vegeta's idea." Vegeta only grinned quietly as Bulma pressed a single button next to the door, causing it to unlock and slowly swing open as lights came on inside. The wall through which the entrance transcended was easily several feet thick, and heavily enforced with several layers of heavy metal. Goku bounded in and looked around, a bit confused. "There's nothin' in here!" He observed. "But... it does look kinda familiar."

Indeed, the room was currently empty. The walls were plain and bare, with only a few small portholes in the walls allowing a glance outside of the ship. A large, round structure was fixated on the ceiling, looming over the room, and set against the far wall was another set of controls similar to the one outside.

"I'll bet it does," Bulma said. "This was a hassle to build into the last ship you used, too. This one's a bit smaller, though."

Goku stood there, looking around and probing his brain, remaining clueless. After another moment, realization finally struck him. "Oh!" He exclaimed. "It's a Gravity Room!"

"You got it!" Bulma said. "This was originally a cargo bay, and still can be if you need it. But," she slapped the doorway to indicate its toughness. "I spent some time to refit this entire section, adding more strength all around it so it can handle the extra stress. And that's why the gravity units outside were so big. It's because they're built to span both floors, and also generate a lot more gravity in here tha-"

"I'm gonna try it out!" Goku interrupted her, already over at the console and fiddling with it. "Wow, it really is just like my old ship! Let's see, how about... fifty times gravity, for starters!" He pressed a final button, and the room powered up. The lights dimmed, and a slight red glow encompassed the entire chamber as the high gravity activated. Goku simply hopped up and down, feeling the gravity but remaining unfazed by it. "Yeah, that's pretty strong, all right!" He paused, then turned back to Bulma again. "How high does this one go?"

"Up to three hundred times Earth's gravity, just like Vegeta's model here at home," she answered. "But remember, this is something extra I added later. The ship wasn't actually designed for it." She held up a finger in strict warning. "You can only go all the way up to three hundred while you're on a planet. Don't go over **two** hundred while you're in space, or it can mess up the ship's power and balance."

"And I can control it from the cockpit too, right?" Trunks inquired.

"Yes, you can." Bulma said. "So if Goku does forget and go overboard, you can throw the kill switch for it upstairs. And speaking of which, let me show you one more thing." She stepped forward, beginning to walk through the room's entrance. Goku panicked and held out his arms in warning.

"Bulma, wait!" He desperately called. "Don't come in, you'll be killed by the-"

The instant she stepped into the thick doorway, something clicked and beeped. In a split second, the room's lighting and environment reverted, and by the time she set one foot into the actual room, the gravity had returned to normal.

"... gravity?"

"That's a fail-safe system I designed," Bulma boasted. "Remember how I said we used alien technology to build this ship? Well, I didn't just mean alien _ships_. I came up with this little feature by studying Scouters!" She pointed to the entrance just behind her. "There are power sensors within the doorway. If somebody with a low power reading passes by them, then the whole room shuts off right away." She motioned to Goku, Trunks, and Pan. "Obviously this won't ever happen with you three, being so strong, but it's mainly there for any wandering passengers."

"Passengers?" Pan said. "I thought we were just looking for the Dragon Balls."

"Oh, well, you never know." Bulma mused. "Someone might need transportation, or rescue, or relocation..." She subtly shot a look at Trunks as she passed by him while exiting the Gravity Room. "Anyway, let's move on upstairs." She walked over to the odd-looking pole in the maintenance room, which upon closer inspection had a wide, circular area of the floor surrounding it."Anyone who can't fly," Bulma instructed, "come over here with me." Bra, Panchy, and ChiChi did so, and grasped onto the pole like Bulma, who pressed a small, previously unseen button embedded within it. With that, a small section in the ceiling slid apart in two halves to reveal a round hole in the ceiling the same size as the circular portion of the floor.

"And here we have the lift," Bulma said, before briskly motioning to the flight-capable members of the group. "After you!"

A moment later, and everyone had either floated or ridden their way up through the small portal and found themselves on the second floor of the ship. Before them lay a large living area which spanned the entire length of the deck. The front half of the room was wide, well-lit, and spacious. It extended across the entire span, but then curved its way around the lift's area to become a narrow hallway for the back third or so of the floor, with a single small door on each side. A third, slightly-wider door led through the front-most wall of the room.

A pair of large, round windows was set within the walls toward the front corners of the main room, their size and concave shape both prominent enough that one could sit and relax within them if they wished, though that was probably better accomplished with the hefty, soft lounge chairs jutting from the wall immediately below them. An assortment of large cabinets and a few small shelves adorned the other sections of the walls. The room's most prominent feature, however, was a large, comfy-looking hole in the middle of the floor. It was in fact a lounging couch of sorts, designed as a complete circle inset below the floor level, and with a wide round table in its center.

"Coool!" Goku exclaimed as he, as expected, began running circles around the room and jumping on everything. To end his third lap, he leapt upon one of the chairs, bouncing off and landing right on top of the table. As he crouched upon it, he looked down and noticed what seemed to be a button. Naturally, he pressed it out of sheer curiosity, which suddenly caused the table to move. It whirred softly as it lowered itself down, eventually and neatly ending up perfectly level and seamless with the sub-level of the floor. Goku peeked his head up over the ledge.

"I see you've found the pit," Bulma noted. "Yes, the table lowers down into the floor, so you can use it as a lounge or sleeping spot, too." She motioned around at the entire room. "In fact, this whole room is more or less the main living space, where you'll eat, sleep, and relax. There's plenty of extra futons, and more than enough room to spread them out for yourselves or any _passengers..._"

Trunks noticed the emphasis towards him again and this time didn't pretend he hadn't. "What kind of 'passengers' do you expect us to be carrying, exactly?" He asked.

"Oh, I don't know," Bulma said. "Refugees, ambassadors, beautiful and eligible space-princesses..."

Trunks face-palmed. "Mom, please..."

"I don't blame her," ChiChi spoke up. "_Madame_ Bulma isn't exactly getting any younger, you know."

"I'll ignore the implications and just agree with her," Bulma said to Trunks. "I wouldn't mind having some grandkids too, y'know! At this rate, I'll be getting them from your sister who's actually young enough to _be_ your daughter!"

"Oh really, may I?" Bra inquired with feigned eagerness and obvious sarcasm.

"Really, dear, there's no need to rush," Panchy suddenly interjected, though nobody was quite sure to exactly whom. "I'm FAR too young to be a great-grandmother!"

"Wha..." Vegeta was taken back. "...How old ARE you?"

"Why, Vegeta dearie," she replied cheerfully. "A gentleman never asks, and a lady never tells!"

"Well, anyway," Trunks said, now anxious to change the subject and get back to the tour. "Let's move on."

"Sure, why not?" ChiChi, Panchy, Bra, and Vegeta remained idling about in the main room as Bulma led the three crewmates to the front end, where they proceeded up a small ramp and through the pair of doors. The small room beyond, evidently what lay within the smaller glass dome on the outer hull, was easily identifiable as the main cockpit and control center. It was slightly elevated above the rest of the deck, with a short ramp leading upwards to a raised sub-floor within it.

There were three floor-mounted seats in total; two in back and off to each side, and the main pilot's chair in front between them. Wrapping around the front chair was a single large, semi-circle-shaped console, with an expansive set of controls. It was adorned with not only a fork-shaped control yoke in dead center, but also a vast array of screens, knobs, buttons, and switches, none of which were easily identifiable by anyone but Trunks and Bulma.

Goku jumped forward and plopped himself down in the front seat. He grabbed the controller and began excitedly moving it around as if he were in a go-kart. "Wow, this is pretty nifty-lookin' stuff!"

"It's also totally not your seat," Trunks said. He moved forward, bodily picking Goku up, turning him around, and plunking him into the rear starboard chair. "THAT'S your seat."

"Aw," Goku sulked.

"Yes, sorry Goku," Bulma said. "But something tells me Trunks is the only one of you three who's qualified to pilot this thing." She joined her son at the front end. "Now, aside from a few gimmicky additions here and there, the controls are pretty much the same as on the X-5 model you've flown before."

"I got it," Trunks nodded. "Go ahead and finish, I'll get this stuff settled."

Goku was way ahead of them, having already exited the cockpit and rushed past everyone else into the hallway portion of the back of the ship. Bulma and Pan caught up to him in a moment as he turned to his right and opened up the small room on the port side. It was a bathroom, containing the standard amenities of a toilet, sink, and several cabinets. But, most eye-catching was the quite spacious and comfortable-looking combination shower and jacuzzi. Right next to it, serving partly as a shelf, was one of the large, round rear windows, evidently placed as such so one could leisurely stargaze as they bathed.

"I call dibs on this room," Pan called out upon spotting the jacuzzi.

"Fine," Goku retorted. "But then I'm not gonna tell you where I'll poop."

"And over here," Bulma indicated, already moving on to the other small room across the hall, "is the storage room."

Inside, all along the curved walls, was not just the other rear window, but also an assortment of drawers, closets, and cabinets. Some were empty and others were noticeably stocked with basic supplies, but most prominent of all was a wide, glass cabinet full of Capsules, all clipped to the inside and arranged neatly in rows. In particular, taking a large portion of the cabinet inside, was another certain sub-cabinet, which looked very securely locked.

"There are places to put stuff normally," Bulma explained. "But the bulk of your supplies are stored here in Capsules."

"Why so many?" Pan inquired.

"Because," Bulma explained, "there was no other conceivable way to stock enough to feed three Saiyans for a whole year."

"Food?" Goku was previously disinterested but now suddenly perked up. "Where's the food?"

"Right here." She indicated the larger, closed-off portion of the Capsule cabinet, particularly a small keypad adjacent to it. "It's locked and only opens with a passcode." She pointed at Goku. "Sorry, Son, but only Pan and Trunks will know it."

"Aaaaaw," Goku whined. "But whyyy?"

"Because you'll all need to make the food last for months on end. If _you_ get into it, it'll be gone in a matter of days." Goku pouted as Bulma exited the room and continued to talk. "Now, there's one last little corner of the ship to show you."

She made her way back out into the main room and stood on the circular lift once more. She again pressed the switch on the pole, and it began to move. However, instead of lowering her back down below deck, it instead began to carry her upwards, through a previously-unseen hole in the ceiling. The instant the now-empty lift descended, Goku and Pan bolted up through the hole in pursuit.

What they witnessed now was a new, cozy-looking chamber. It was a single, round room, and it contained a wide semi-circle almost identical in size and structure to the one inset within the floor downstairs. It was wrapped around the inner edge of the room across from the lift, from which it was separated by a small safety railing. But the room's most defining feature was the fact that, from the backs of the couch on up, the entire thing was encompassed in a single glass dome, the largest one of the two visible from outside on top of the ship.

Bulma was seated casually on the couch, her feet up on the table, and she gestured to the room around her as the two Saiyan children gazed in wonder. "Well, what do you think?" She said. "This is the main lounge. It's the best spot in the whole ship to relax and gaze at the stars. It'd be a great place to sleep, too."

"Awesome!" Goku beamed, before turning to Pan. "I call dibs!"

"Mom!" Trunks called from below. He flew up and stuck his head up into the lounge. "The hangar's been prepped, and I've finished the pre-flight checks!"

"Alright, then," she answered, standing up. "Let's get ready to send you guys packing, then!"

A moment later, Bulma and the three-Saiyan crew had exited the ship and returned to the main hangar where everyone else had already relocated. Surprisingly, there were a few more individuals in attendance now than had been beforehand. Standing around and chatting with the group were now Oob, Gohan, Videl, and...

"Kuririn!" Goku bounded over to his old friend's side and greeted him enthusiastically. "What are you doing here?"

"Whaddya mean?" Kuririn gave him a feigned look of offense. "I'm here to see you guys off, of course."

"Aw, you should'a come earlier then. You missed the tour of the ship!" Goku chided. "It's really cool, nothing like the ones we took to Namek all those years ago!"

"I'll bet it is," Kuririn conceded, gazing at the vessel. "Namek, huh? Shooting out into space, looking for Dragon Balls, getting into all sorts of trouble..." He chuckled longingly. "It was terrifying back then, but I somehow really miss those days now..."

"Hey, cheer up," Goku pointed at it. "You can still come along with us if you want. There's plenty o' room!"

"Haha, sorry, Goku," Kuririn laughed again. "You may have cheated your own age, but some of us are getting too old for this sort of thing... Right, Bulma?"

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

Partly to avoid Bulma's wrath, Goku then turned his attention to his star pupil. "Okay then, Oob," Goku addressed him, with hands on his hips and trying to take on a 'stern teacher' attitude which was definitely overshadowed by his child-sized adorableness. "I'm gonna be out in space for almost a whole year. So I'm leavin' you in charge of protectin' the Earth."

"Yes, sir," Oob replied, trying his best to humor his minuscule master.

"That works for me," Vegeta piped in. "Here I was worried I'd actually be obligated to defend this mud-ball."

"I'm gonna focus on training Pan while we're gone," Goku continued to Oob. "So trust me, there'll be plenty for all of us to show off when we get back. In the meantime," he gave an enthusiastic thumbs-up, "don't let me down!"

"Speaking of which," Gohan came forth, carrying a large satchel which he handed to Pan. "Here's something else to pass the time with." She unzipped it partway to take a peek inside, and her face twitched into a slight expression of disappointment as she discovered it was full of textbooks and paper.

"I talked with your teachers yesterday, and they each gave me a run-down of what you'll end up missing," Gohan chipperly dictated. "So I put together a little study program for you. It won't cover everything, but it's enough that when you get back, you should be able to jump right back into class with everyone else!"

"Oh, _goody_," she replied dryly, before sighing. "Between homework and training, I'm never gonna get to relax..."

"Now then, Pan dear," ChiChi leaned down to give her granddaughter a quick kiss on the forehead. "Take care o' yourself, and make sure you and Trunks keep your Grandpa out of trouble, won'tcha?" This was immediately followed by an array of "yeah," and "definitely" and "fo' shizzle" and various other votes of affirmation from everyone else in the room.

"Hey," Goku protested. "How irresponsible do you all think I'm gonna be, anyway?"

"Better not answer that," ChiChi responded as she likewise gave a brief kiss to her disproportionately diminutive husband. "You keep Pan safe now, Goku."

"Sure thing, ChiChi," Goku smiled, returning it. "And don't worry, this'll all go fine, just like we planned. Everything'll be back to normal before y' know it!"

"Okay, now," Bulma reclaimed everyone's attention. "Time's a-wasting, so let's get underway!"

After one more round of hugs, handshakes, and general farewells, the group split in two separate directions. Those who were to remain on Earth assembled themselves up on the higher, ground-level deck of the underground hangar, with Bulma setting up shop at a fancy-looking set of computerized controls.

Meanwhile, the trio of soon-to-be space travelers hopped their way back up the ladder and entered the ship. Once everything was checked and double-checked, making sure everyone's cargo was aboard and the hatches were sealed, Goku, Trunks and Pan all piled into the cockpit. Goku hopped into his previously "assigned" seat behind and to the right of Trunks, while Pan situated herself opposite him on the left side. It took them a moment before Pan found the button to activate the safety straps, which extended from within the back of the chair over her shoulders to lock in place. As Goku was following suit, he noticed Pan's hands nervously twitching a bit, and her face plastered with anxiety.

"What's th' matter?" Goku asked. "You nervous?'

"Well yeah, a little," Pan responded. "I've never gone out into space before."

"Well then, you're in for a treat," Trunks assured her as he entered. "And trust me, there's no better way to be doing it than in this ship." He took his seat, strapped himself in, and flicked a few switches. There was a sudden rising hum as the ship powered up. The room darkened a bit as the ambient light was turned down to emphasize and focus the lighting on Trunks' controls for the delicate takeoff procedure. Echoing clanks and clicks could be heard from within the lower sections of the ship in preparation for the exact same thing.

Satisfied, Trunks pressed down a button, evidently the control for an intercom. "We're all set!"

"Roger," Bulma's voice came through from the other end. "Starting the final countdown now."

A small display among Trunks' controls suddenly lit up and displayed "30."

29... 28...

The trio's attention shifted upwards, as the amount of morning sunlight shining down upon them drastically increased. The massive domed ceiling over the hangar was receding to one side, opening itself up wide to allow for the imminently emerging vessel within it.

21... 20... 19...

"The hangar is open, and you're clear for launch," Bulma's voice once again resonated through the intercom. "Keep yourself focused out there, guys. As much fun as I'm sure you'll have, remember that this isn't just a vacation. Those Dragon Balls are waiting for you to find them, for Earth's sake."

13... 12... 11...

"Finally," she piped up again. "I just want to tell you three... good luck. We're all counting on you."

As the rumble of the ship's cutting-edge engines began to escalate, everyone began chanting along with the final remnants of the countdown.

"Five.. four... three... two... one...!"

Upon "zero," the main engine roared and burst to life, emitting a short but powerful blue stream of energy below it. The advanced, potent-but-localized propulsion system allowed for the launch's spectators to remain on the catwalks of the hangar, within not even a dozen yards of the ship, with nothing to endanger or offend them but noise as the vessel steadily began to climb upwards on its own power. In a mere moment, it had left the hangar entirely, accelerating rapidly as it gained more and more height every second. Not half a minute later, it had vanished from sight, disappearing entirely in the morning sun's glare as it breached through the upper limits of Earth's atmosphere.

Everyone stood there in the hangar, silently straining their eyes in futile efforts to keep track of the long-gone ship. Finally, Bulma spoke up again.

"See, I told you we didn't need a test flight!" This prompted a round of hearty laughter from several of the spectators.

"... What's so funny?"

Everyone's eyes managed to adjust as they looked upwards where, leaning over the edge of the launch dome and peeking down at them, was the newcomer from whom that last comment had originated. It was Yajirobe, and he appeared somewhat irritated and... singed.

"'Cuz I don't see nuthin' funny about me almost getting fried, there!" He then jumped off the ledge, soaring down and making a somewhat less-than-graceful landing on the catwalk. "Here I am walkin' across the lawn tryin' to find my way in, when suddenly this thing opens up right next to me, and I'm gettin' almost fried to death by some kinda random blue hellfire-spittin' beast." He poked at his own face in agitation. "Damn near burned off my mustache..."

"Oh, sorry Yajirobe," Gohan put in. "Looks like you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"Ah, whatever then, just my luck," he replied. "Anyway, where's Son loungin' around here?"

He reached into his sash, from which he procured a small cloth bag, the contents of which were instantly recognizable.

"He came by the other day askin' Karin for some Senzu Beans for a trip he's takin' or something." He looked around a few more times, scanning the crowd for Goku. "Does he want 'em or not?"

* * *

Somewhere out in the vast reaches of space, a particular orange gem of a world had acquired itself a little visitor.

The little scout robot bolted through the thin atmosphere at speeds which were frankly surprising for such a miniature construct like itself. From its vantage point here, some hundred feet high above the dusty, craggy surface, it could carry out its primary objective: to survey the planet. In actuality, however, it had very specific features to observe.

So far, this planet was extremely unpromising and unlikely to meet the required parameters. It was distinctly lacking in any significant form or amount of life. The planet's proximity to its sun and thin atmosphere meant the daytime temperature was lethally high. Tests of soil samples revealed that the widespread volcanic activity which had formed the planet's surface centuries ago had long since been reduced to an insignificant percentage of its former ferocity. The atmosphere was certainly too thin and lacking in basic substances for supporting animal life.

What little amount of plant life present was no more than a few hundred different forms of something similar to algae. As unimpressive as that may seemed, they evidently somehow thrived using only the trace amounts of moisture in the atmosphere, which at most would manifest itself as nothing more than scatted, barely-visible patches of fog during the planet's night phase.

While some small corner of the robot's comparatively unsophisticated A.I. found this fascinating and worthy of further study, its own "desires" were firmly overruled by its primary programming, to which the miracle-algae certainly didn't apply. Alas, this planet was undoubtedly just the latest on an ever-growing list of non-workable prospects, and the little robot recorded it as such. After seventeen years, it was zero for one hundred and three planets.

Its work here decidedly done, the little robot changed course, aiming to return to the small, space-faring pod which, like so many times before, it would plug itself into and set course for the stars. As it flew, it worked to neatly organize, compress, and file away what little data it had gathered on this world, ultimately pointless as it was, since neither it nor its compatriots would ever return, never to study the miraculous algae...

Suddenly, the situation took an unexpected turn. The little robot's visual sensors picked up something odd on the horizon. Shooting down from above, leaving a blazing red trail of heat behind it, was an unknown object, veering rapidly towards the surface. The little robot watched in fascination as it touched down violently, kicking up a large visible cloud of dust and making gravitational and auditory waves which would have surely gotten the robot's attention even if it hadn't seen it first-hand.

This did not compute. The planet was alone in its solar system, a single, mostly-dead, overheated rock practically knocking on the door of its sun. There were no other planets, no asteroid fields, no anything else for hundreds of millions of kilometers which could have hurled something or been hurled in this direction. The robot had taken extensive scans while en route, and it had certainly not detected any comets or other foreign objects on course towards this system.

This left only one possible explanation. The mysterious new object, whatever it was, had come in from very, very far away, traveling very, very fast. What was more, the robot's multi-spectral scanners were now picking up an odd, unknown sort of energy signature from it. This object was certainly not applicable to the robot's primary objective. Rather, it was even better. It applied to its _secondary_ objective, which in turn appealed to its creator's scientific curiosity: to report any encountered scientific anomaly which was not previously catalogued or immediately explainable.

What could only be described as "excitement" flashed its way all throughout the little robot's processors as it finally realized that, after all this time, it had finally encountered something worth reporting.

Having already changed course once coming to this conclusion, the little robot came ever closer and closer to the object's point of impact. The unknown energy readings were getting more intense and perplexing by the second, mixed in with the massive amount of heat due to its speed of entry. If the robot's trajectory calculations were reliable, then the object may have even passed right by the system's sun on its way here.

Finally, the robot reached ground zero, which was the side of a small, rocky cliff. The impact had blasted apart the ground in a several-meter radius around the object, and the debris was still glowing red-hot from the destruction. The cloud of smoke was starting to dissipate, and the robot was finally able to make visual contact with the enigmatic object.

It appeared to be a small glass sphere. Despite the sheer force of its flight and impact, it was undamaged and retained its perfect, symmetrical roundness. Strangely enough, while the little robot's thermal sensors were going haywire from the burning rock around it, the glass sphere itself was cold to its core. In particular, the intensity of the cold was most focused within the five pitch-black-colored stars which seemed to swirl and float about within it.

All the information on this unnatural occurrence that the little robot could muster together was swiftly compiled into a single data package and quickly transmitted back to the robot's pod. From there, it would be relayed across hundreds of light-years to the little robot's master, along with a very straightforward message.

_IDENTIFY, UNIT DB4645T2011KZ, TRANSMIT PRIORITY BETA – ENCOUNTERED UNIDENTIFIABLE ANOMALY IN SPACIAL GRID 15362. TRANSMITTING VISUAL AND SCANNER DATA – AWAITING FURTHER INSTRUCTION._


	11. Money For Nothing

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Eleven – "Money For Nothing"

Somewhere, on a planet far, far away from Earth... a cliff exploded.

The source of this wanton destruction was nothing native to the usually calm and mostly-empty world. Normally, it was prone to simply floating around, letting its water cycle work itself and its numerous plants create oxygen. Never had it imagined it would become host to the pair of individuals now leaping about and wreaking havoc among its mountainous landscape. Mostly because it was nothing more than a big chunk of rock in space, and those don't tend to 'imagine' much of anything.

At first glance, these two individuals seemed to be locked in some high-scale form of deadly combat, or to be some mighty predator and its prey, as the slightly-larger of the two was on the offensive against the smaller. In actuality, they were merely exercising.

Goku blocked another punch from his granddaughter, leaping back so she could carry her momentum over to the next ledge. She launched into a flurry of rapid, smaller punches upon landing, from which he deftly swayed his torso and dodged.

"Good, Pan!" he remarked. "Keep your power at full and really get your blood pumping!"

* * *

_"So long, Earth! We promise not to let you blow up!"_

_Son Goku eagerly pressed his face up against the concave glass of the cockpit window, straining to get one last glimpse of the planet as it rapidly receded from view below them. Once the ship had broken free of Earth's orbit, the rumbling of launch had subsided. Things were now smooth and calm as could be, with only the low hum of the ship's engines resonating through the inside as it coasted along, free to shoot through the stars._

_Goku quickly redirected his glance upwards, in time to see a second familiar, large heavenly body pass them by at dizzying speeds. "Bye-bye, moon! We promise not to let you blow up, either... again!" He then turned himself around again, glancing over to his left. "Hey Pan, bet you've never seen the moon from THIS close... huh?"  
_

* * *

Meanwhile, elsewhere, Trunks was outside the ship, floating in midair aside its forward section while he busily tinkered away at the vessel's main sensor array. Reaching into the opened bulkhead with a tiny pliers-like tool, he began to carefully turn a particular node...

… When a steady rumble suddenly overcame the entire area. His grip slipped, and the entire small fixture popped out. Managing to catch it before it disappeared into the nooks and crannies of the ship's hull, he looked off into the distance.

"They're literally on the opposite side of the planet," he commented. "But they're still making this much of a racket all the way over here." He shook his head. "Shoulda put them off on its moon instead, air or no air..."

* * *

_His granddaughter was firmly planted in her seat, keeping her hands clenched in a life-or-death grip around the straps of her harness. Her face was pale, wide-eyed and unresponsive, facing straight ahead and revealing zero movement save for an occasional nervous twitch._

_"S-sorry, Grandpa," she muttered through chattering teeth. "I w-wasn't looking..."_

_"S'matter with you?" Goku curiously looked her over for a moment before deducing the problem. "Don't tell me travelin' in space freaks you out?"_

_"I've never done this before," Pan replied, the color starting to return to her face._

_"Well, don't worry," Trunks said. He was the first to release his harness and stand up from his pilot's seat. "You'll get used to it. We're clear of Earth, and the artificial gravity's taken over. It's fine to move around and do whatever you want now."_

_"Alright!" Goku hastily released himself as well, jumping down from his seat and hopping in place once or twice. "Yeah, that's good stuff, alright! Speaking of gravity," he bounded over and grasped Pan's shoulder. "C'mon, Pan, let's go test the-"_

_"DON'T RUSH ME."  
_

* * *

Goku hopped to the left, avoiding Pan's incoming flying kick. It made contact with the stone wall behind him instead, shattering it to a thousand pieces. Goku leapt into the air horizontally to avoid the miniature avalanche of dust and rocks which followed, but Pan didn't bother. She simply flared her already intense aura of Ki to blow it all away, then raised her arms above her head. Laying one hand back upon the other's palm, she quickly focused a large amount of Ki, then thrust both arms straight forward.

"Masenko!"

A powerful burst of Ki erupted from her hands and zeroed in on Goku at full speed. Despite its impressiveness, however, he easily swatted the attack away with one hand, letting it soar off into the distance behind him. There it exploded, shaking the entire region and taking out an entire small mountain with it.

Pan didn't let up, however, and rocketed forward to take things hand-to-hand again. She threw one solid punch, which Goku saw coming and easily blocked with his forearm. She immediately followed up by executing a mid-air front flip and bringing her heel down for a driving kick. Goku simply hopped backwards again, avoiding it neatly and letting it splinter the rock upon which he had stood just a second before. In the process, he got a good look at Pan's face, and combined with the feel of her Ki, he deemed it time to shift their training's focus.

"Okay, Pan, that's it!" he called. "Now, focus your Ki and dig in!"

* * *

_About ten minutes later, the two had finally made their way below deck and entered the Gravity Room. Pan was glancing around, examining the place, as Goku excitedly made his way over to the controls._

_"Okay, new Gravity Room," he said as he started fiddling around with the controls. "Let's see what you can do. Why don't we start off at... fifty times, like before?" He pressed a few final buttons, and for the second time in an hour the room sprung to life. The light became dim and red in hue, and things started getting a lot heavier. Within a few seconds, the requested level of fifty times the normal gravity of Earth had been achieved._

_Pan stumbled a bit, as the increase caught her by surprise. "Whoa!" She exclaimed, exerting considerable effort to remain standing. "T-this is hard..."_

_"Oh, that's right, you're not really used to higher gravity." Goku noticed, barely even feeling the effects himself. "You spent that week with me in the Room of Spirit and Time, but the gravity in there only gets up to about ten times." He casually walked over to her. "First step to our training will be for you to get used to it. Because before long, we're working all the way up to three hundred! That'll get things done for sure."_

_"You sound like you're ten steps ahead of me, Grandpa," Pan remarked, as she tried her best to stand up straight. "W-what are you planning?"_

_"Oh, nothin' special," he replied, grinning a bit. "Only that before this trip is over, I'm gonna make you a Super Saiyan!"  
_

* * *

Pan stood there in a bracing stance, arms at her side. In these last 20 seconds or so, as per her Grandpa's instruction, she had taken advantage of her worked-up, high-tension training state to dig deep into her Ki, more so than she'd ever done before, in an effort to pull out something amazing.

"That's good, Pan! Don't forget, you have to get angry!" Goku encouraged her. "The first change is triggered by rage!"

"I'm... trying..." Pan grunted through clenched teeth. Her Ki continued to shimmer and blow around her. Any remaining dust in the immediate area had already been blown away by her aura in the first couple of seconds, leaving only the rock face. Their clothes and hair flapped around in the wind generated by her violently-pulsating Ki. "I... can't..."

"Ah!" Goku pounded his fist, suddenly having an idea. "Think about that guy back on Earth who you caught goin' out with other girls!"

"Selzer… you... #&$%..."

It seemed to work, at least partially. Her Ki fluctuated with her strong emotions, and if you looked very closely, you could swear there was a hint of a golden hue to it... Then suddenly, it was over. Pan's aura disappeared and her Ki plummeted as she gave in to the strain and exhaustion. She rolled onto her back, panting as she lay upon the stony mountain ground.

"It's... no good," she moaned. "I can't do it after all..."

"Ah, don't worry, Pan." Goku sat down next to her and patted her head playfully. "This was more of a test today than anything. I wanted to see how good you were, and we couldn't really let ya power up like that on the ship."

"Well then," Pan replied, starting to catch her breath, "what's the verdict?"

"Hmm," Goku mused for a moment. "Well, you're a lot stronger than I thought you were. Pretty close to transforming, too. But..." He put his chin on his hands. "I'm thinkin' it's not gonna come so easily to you. In the end, you might just need the right motivation."

"Really?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Problem is, you've had a peaceful life so far, and you don't have much to get really angry about. Somehow I bet just bein' mad at your boyfriend isn't gonna cut it."

He looked out around them at the vast landscape. When they'd arrived in this area, this planet's sun had only just been rising, but now it was clearly visible and casting a bright mid-morning glow upon the entire area. That meant Trunks would be losing light over in the "evening" zone.

"Think we oughta get back, then," Goku said, standing up. He offered a hand to Pan. "Trunks is probably done fixin' the ship by now."

"Okay," Pan stood and took his hand. Thanks to Goku's ever-useful Instant Movement, a mere moment later they were standing thousands of miles away, in front of the ship where Trunks awaited them. He noticed their presence and gave his greetings.

"Against all odds, I've finished with the calibrations," he announced, beginning to walk around towards the entrance to the aft. "Let's go inside and test them out."

"Sure!" Goku responded, as he and Pan followed. "I'm gettin' hungry, too."

"But Grandpa, I wonder," Pan spoke up again. "Trunks and Uncle Goten could always become Super Saiyans without having to do anything special. So why's it so hard for me?"

"Well," Goku pondered, "probably 'cuz Gohan wasn't a Super Saiyan anymore when he and Videl... uh, made you."

"Really?" Pan responded as the trio reached the rear entrance and began floating upwards towards the door. "That's all it is?"

"Yeah, I don't really know why, or how it works," he told her. "And every time I ask Bulma, she gets all mad and says, 'Son, how many times do I have to tell you, I'm not a gen-' Uh... gena..."

"Geneticist," Trunks put in as he secured the airlock behind them.

"Yeah, that's it," Goku nodded, as the three rode the lift up to the main deck. "A genie-cyst. Don't worry, Pan, you'll be able to do it soon. It took less than a year of training with me for Gohan, and he wasn't born able t' do it, either." He and Pan remained in the main living area as Trunks moseyed into the cockpit.

"In the meantime," Goku continued, working his brain as best he could. "I think I'm gonna teach you a certain neat old technique I learned once. It should help your body get a knack for usin' that much power and make things easier for you later. Trust me, you'll be a Super Saiyan in no time!"

"Well, here's hoping," Pan said.

"I don't believe it!"

"What?" Pan called back to Trunks indignantly. "You think I can't?"

"No, no, not that," he responded. "Come here, you two. Look at this!"

They bounded across the room in response to Trunks' clatter, squeezing into the cockpit to see what was the matter. He pointed to a particular circular display, which appeared to be some sort of sensor readout. Right in the middle of the screen lay a single blinking dot, and some distance away, less than halfway to one of the edges... lay another.

"Don't tell me that's..." Pan started.

"… The Dragon Radar?" Goku finished.

"You bet it is," Trunks confirmed. "The long-range Dragon Radar is one of the instruments I had to adjust, since it never got fully tested on Earth. Here I was, just intending to try it out, but... it's actually picking up a Dragon Ball! And it's close!"

"Woohoo!" Pan threw her arms up in the air. "Our first Dragon Ball!"

"Well actually, the first one is the four-star that Piccolo grab-"

"Shut up, Grandpa," she snapped. "How close is it, Trunks?"

"I still had it set to a relatively short and focused radius," he noted, taking a closer look at the readout. "At that range, it's got to be right here, in this very same star system. Maybe even just on the next planet over from here!"

"We've only been in space about a week," Goku commented, "and we already found a Dragon Ball just by accident!" He grinned. "This trip's off to a good start."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Pan gleefully declared. "Let's go get it!"

"I don't see why not," Trunks said. "Prepare for liftoff!"

Within minutes, said preparations had been swiftly carried out, and the graceful squid-like vessel had hurled itself beyond the meager little planet's atmosphere and out into open space. The first few of the next twenty or so minutes were spent relieving Pan's panic over the launch and congratulating her on having handled it much better this time. The remaining portion was filled with enthusiastic chatter regarding their mysterious destination, what kind of people or animals might be there, and wagering amounts of food on how many stars the Dragon Ball would have.

Before long, their destination was in sight. It was a modestly sized world, very plain looking for all intents and purposes. What of its surface that could be seen was almost entirely land of varying levels, with only a few small, scattered bodies of water connected by a sparse network of rivers. As the ship approached the planet, it flew past one of its two moons, both of which were a bright Mars-like red, and each almost half as large as the planet itself.

"What the heck?" Pan noted, gazing out upon the growing view of the lumpy-looking world. "I think the other planet we were just on was more inviting."

"It's so plain and rough," Goku agreed. "Mostly a desert?"

"Well, it seems inhabited, at least," Trunks informed them as he focused his attention on multiple computer consoles at once. "The Dragon Ball's signal is coming from what looks like a city, in the Northern hemisphere."

"So someone probably already has it?" Pan asked.

"Most likely," he answered. "They could have easily seen it crash nearby and gone after it."

"Then it should be easy to get it back," Goku said.

"Well, maybe," Trunks mused. "It depends on how willing they are to give it up, not to mention whether they'll believe us when we tell them about it." He turned around and grinned. "But that's why we brought the four-star ball with us instead of leaving it at home. Being able to show another one from the set should lend at least a little bit of credibility to-"

_Beep. Beep. Beep.  
_

* * *

Roughly five minutes later, the three of them stood outside and contemplated their situation.

"We've only been in space about a week," Goku restated, "and we already crashed the ship." He put his hands on his hips. "This trip's off to a bad start."

"Trunks, what the hell?" Pan snapped at him. "Didn't you ever learn how to land this thing? I almost died of a heart attack!"

"It's not my fault," he protested. "One second the sensors picked up some weird radiation field around the planet, and then the next, primary power just suddenly disappeared." He looked everything over. "In fact, I was good enough a pilot, thank you very much, to glide it down and minimize the damage."

"You mean the ship just conked out for no reason?" Goku inquired.

"It 'conked out' all right, but I'm sure there's a reason," Trunks responded. "That energy field HAD to be the cause." He walked slowly around the ship, continuing to look it over as he talked. "Yeah, none of this is too major. We have the supplies in storage I need to fix it. But the real problem is making sure whatever happened to knock us down doesn't happen again."

"Guess we can't go anywhere until we find out and do something about it," Pan deduced.

"Maybe we can ask those guys," Goku said, pointing off into the distance.

The other two followed his aim and also took notice. Approaching from some good length away, from the direction of the city visible on the horizon, was a small caravan of vehicles. One or two larger, enclosed crafts were surrounded by a small patrol of what seemed like hover bikes of some sort. They were racing in the trio's direction at high speed, with the glare of the afternoon sun in the east serving to partially conceal them from sight.

"Is this the welcoming committee?" Pan dryly asked.

"Be careful. If the ship was disabled on purpose," Trunks warned, "it's possible they'll try to attack or capture us."

"I don't think so," Goku pondered. "Their Ki isn't very big. I barely even noticed 'em coming."

Before they knew it, the group had reached them. The half-dozen or so individuals on the hover bikes, each armored up and with their faces fully covered by a helmet, immediately swooped around and surrounded the entire ship. One of the larger vehicles, evidently for construction or other heavy-duty work, hung back somewhat while the other one took position right in front of the Earthling trio. There it floated in place for a moment, before its belly opened up to lower a large catwalk down to the ground.

Two particular beings of two different alien races unfamiliar to the the Earth party immediately made a dramatic emergence from within the vessel. Both were wearing identical armored outfits which seemed every bit, if not more, fashionable than functional. Other than that, however, they could not have been more different.

One of them was evidently female of just below average height. She had pale purplish-gray skin, no nose, wide and devilish eyes, and crazed orange hair that resembled some sort of carnivorous jungle plant and was barely restrained by a stylish headband.

The other, half as tall and twice as bulky as she was, was evidently male judging by his, or its, bright red facial hair, which contrasted sharply against his, her, or its dark brown skin. Though, judging from the baldness on top of his, her, or its head, perhaps this particular alien race just kept their hair there regardless of gender. Maybe it was to draw attention away from the impossibly large ears. Regardless, for the time being, the Earthlings, the author, and the readers all just assumed he was male and rolled with it. He was the first of the two to speak.

"Welcome, travelers," he announced in a gruff voice, "to Planet Imegga!"

"Wow!" Goku exclaimed. "These people are pretty nice after all!"

"I am Ghel," the assumed male proclaimed.

"And I am Shilla," the other smoothly finished. "We are the top subordinates of the illustrious Don Kia!" The two of them then pointed at the heroes and spoke in unison. "And from this point forward, your vessel, and everything on it, is his property!"

There was a momentary pause.

"Wow!" Goku exclaimed. "These people are jerks after all!"

"Master Don Kia is the proprietor of this entire planet," Ghel smugly informed them. "Anything and everything that touches down here belongs to him."

"I see," Trunks said, folding his arms. "Our crash is a little bit less mysterious now."

"So, you're handsome AND smart," Shilla responded to him with a touch of feigned amour. "Then you'll know better than to put up a fight, and instead just surrender peacefully."

"Hmmm," Trunks mockingly scratched his chin as though pondering it over. "What do you guys think?"

"I think," Goku said, "I like this ship just how it is. Except, y'know, fixed."

"Yeah, me too," Pan followed. "And I'm itching for a fight."

Ghel raised his hands and sighed. "Why do they always want to do it the hard way?"

"Alright then, you asked for it!" Shilla gestured to the rebellious newcomers and gave the order to the gaggle of soldiers. "All hands, attack!"

They all leaped in at once, as though intending to dog-pile their targets into submission. The group was surprised, however, when they all landed on nothing but dirt. Confused for a moment, they all eventually looked upwards to see their slippery foes floating in the air above them. There they "stood", eying the group below with obvious disinterest.

"Not much to speak of, are they?" Pan concluded.

"Nope," Goku agreed, extending one arm towards their gathered assailants. He focused a bit, and an invisible wave of Ki burst forth from his hand. Before the troops could react, the ground below and around them split apart as both they and a cloud of dust and debris were all blown away. They lay scattered and dazed quite a few yards away, decidedly now out of the so-called "fight".

"Well, well," Shilla seemed pleasantly surprised. "These folks are tougher than we thought, Ghel."

"Indeed," he said. "Looks like we'll have to handle this personally. Prepare yourselves, you three! As if it'll do you any good!"

With that, the two of them also took flight at high speed, blitzing the group. Shilla dove straight for Pan, while Ghel attempted to take on Goku and Trunks simultaneously. The decrepit duo made every flashy effort to assault their respective opponents, but it became immediately obvious that these two weren't very good, either. Shilla's moves were graceful and appeared potent, but in reality were useless and left her wide open to counter-attacks. Ghel used a lot of mid-air twists and flips, acting as though his small size gave him some sort of advantage in agility.

"Wow," Pan casually mentioned, appearing almost bored as she easily dodged one of Shilla's swipes and counterattacked with a punch to the neck. "These guys suck, too."

"I think Bra could take them both on at once," Trunks had both hands in his pockets as he used a foot to easily redirect a Ki blast from Ghel.

"Forget your sister," Goku quipped, grabbing Ghel by the ear and throwing him some distance away. "I think my brother could have beat either one of 'em."

"Wait, who?" Pan responded, obviously more interested in the news that she apparently had an uncle at some point than in the fight. Meanwhile, the outmatched duo regrouped and regarded their foes with desperate frustration.

"This is bad," Shilla whined. "This is really, really bad. They are way, way stronger than we could have anticipated!"

"Yeah, no way we can take them like this," Ghel looked up at her hopefully. "Should we call for Redgic? He could beat them for sure!"

"Hmm?" Goku overheard this little tidbit of information and regarded them with renewed interest for a moment before staring off intently towards the city.

"What, and look like weak fools again in front of Don Kia?" Shilla reprimanded her partner. "No way! Instead, it's time for Plan B!"

"We seem to resort to Plan B an awful lot..."

"Shut up and just do it!"

Following her instruction, Ghel reached under his breastplate and pulled out some sort of small, spherical object. He clicked a button on its surface, then threw it as he and Shilla jumped back some distance. It rolled to a halt in front of the Earthling group, and a dense fog began spraying out from a series of holes on its surface.

"A smokescreen?" Pan observed. "Really?"

"Looks like it," Goku said. "I guess they don't know that... we can sense... their Ki..."

"Wait... whaaa..." Pan suddenly became dizzy and staggered back and forth. Goku and Trunks did the same, and the latter was suddenly struck with realization, especially when he glimpsed Shilla and Ghel wearing some sort of filtering apparatus over their mouths.

"No way," he muttered. "It's... knock... out... gaaasss..."

All three of them promptly fell to the ground and blacked out.

* * *

To nobody's surprise, it was the scent of a home-cooked meal which finally stirred Goku from his impromptu slumber. He groggily sat up and sniffed the air, as one half of his brain worked to locate the source of the aroma while the other half tried to process where he was. It was a small, spartanly furnished living area of some kind, very dimly lit. Goku's eyes took their time to adjust as he saw the familiar forms of Pan and Trunks nearby, as well as a few others he didn't recognize. Pan was the first to notice him.

"He's finally awake!"

Goku rubbed his eyes and took a look around. The three of them had been situated close together on the plain and worn wooden floor, evidently having been laid there in their slumber, each with a pair of blankets, one beneath and another on top for covering.

Looking further beyond his two compatriots, Goku took in the layout of the dwelling itself. A single, fragile-looking door, evidently leading outside thanks to the small, high-up window adjacent to it, was situated on one end, while a pair of smaller doors led out the opposite end. The main room in which they found themselves consisted of little more than the open space in which they lay and a kitchen-like area with a table and a meager stock of supplies and equipment.

Calmly situated in the kitchen area were their hosts, a pair of aliens. They were both short in stature, neither one seeming any taller than Pan. They had plain faces with no nose, instead decorated by pointed ears and a pair of small, whisker-like appendages hanging from either side of their chins. A sparse amount of hair hung out of the large turbans they wore wrapped around their large, bulbous heads, which matched the plain, barely-better-than-rags outfits adorning the rest of their figures.

Upon closer inspection, they were both quite elderly. The male of the pair was seated at the far end of the small table, across from Trunks. A puffy mustache lined the lips of his weary but cheerful looking face, and he was visibly hunched over. The old lady, stout and a bit pudgy, was leaning over a single burner on top of the stove. She was idly humming to herself as she stirred away at what appeared to be a creamy stew of some kind, no doubt from where the delectable smell originated.

"... Food?" Goku uttered.

Pan sighed. "How'd I know that'd be the first thing you think about?"

"I can't help it," Goku said. "I never did get to eat after our trainin' earlier, since we got all excited about the Dragon Ball..." Suddenly, Goku's memory came rushing back to him. "Oh! Right!" He glanced around again, finally actually processing the information from something more than his nose. "Yeesh," he remarked. "What happened?"

"Long story short," Trunks said, "we have shelter for the night, thanks to these folks."

"Really?" Goku smiled at them. "And food, too?"

"Grandpa, really!" Pan scolded him. "Quit being rude!"

"Oh no, that's quite alright," the elderly female tenderly remarked, as she wobbled over and placed the bubbling pot of gooey goodness onto a spot in the middle of the table. "It's ready now, go ahead and help yourselves!"

Goku hopped up off the floor and onto a waiting mat by the table, right in between Trunks and Pan to his right and left, respectively. The three complied with the woman's encouragement and began portioning the soupy mixture to themselves, then spooning it up and eating enthusiastically. The old couple sat across from them, smiling gingerly. After a few mouthfuls of food, Goku studied them curiously.

"So who are you guys?"

"Oh, of course," the man replied. "You were still out of it when we introduced ourselves. My name is Futopa," he gestured to himself, then to the other. "And this is my wife, Haquai."

"Pleased to meet you, young one," she nodded and remarked.

"I ain't young, I'm-"

"Never mind that, Grandpa," Pan interrupted him, before addressing their hosts again. "So you guys are natives?"

"Yes, indeed," Futopa confirmed. "Rough as it may be, we're quite proud to call this little world our home. Welcome to Imegga."

"That's the second time we've heard those words today," Trunks commented. "I'm glad this instance is proving much more pleasant so far."

"Yeah, this time instead of gettin' our ship stolen, we get food!" Goku joyfully observed, as he finished off his second bowl. "A creamy soup with... are these potatoes?"

"Don't be silly, Grandpa," Pan corrected him. "Potatoes are an Earth vegetable. There's no way they could b-"

"Ah, yes, they're potatoes," Futopa nodded. Pan frowned for a minute as if trying to comprehend this, but then shrugged and continued eating. "It's rather meager, I know," Haquai said apologetically. "But not much grows on our world nowadays. Not this far from any of the lakes, at least. We can only manage to get a hold of about a dozen of them every few days."

"Then... wait a minute," Trunks was suddenly flabbergasted as he glanced back and forth between them and his empty bowl. "Did we just eat your food for the week?"

"Oh now, now, don't worry about us," Futopa protested. "We Imeggans are hardy. We're used to living in such barren conditions, after all." He patted his large cranium. "Extra nutrients get stored up here as fat, so we can get along just fine for several days without eating or drinking anything."

"Oh, like a camel!"

"Grandpa," Pan once again protested, "I don't think they have camels eith-"

"Yes, like a camel," Futopa once again agreed, much to Pan's continued confusion. "So we're quite accustomed to being gracious towards stranded newcomers like yourselves."

"Which begs the question..." Trunks got down to business. "What's going on with this planet? You speak as if crash-landing here is a regular thing."

"Well, it's a bit of a long story," Haquai warned. "But you see... Planet Imegga has been under a quarantine of sorts, all thanks to that troublesome Don Kia."

"Hey, we heard that name when we first landed," Pan recollected. "He's the boss here, or something?"

"For quite some time now, yes," Haquai said. "But it all started some... oh, it must have been almost thirty years ago now, since the first invasion."

"But it didn't start with him, oh no," Futopa clarified. "He's only been around for a few years, but long before that, Imegga's troubles all started with this one really nasty fellow. His name was... oh, it started with an 'F' but I can't remember..."

"Freeza?" Goku's attention miraculously shifted from his food to the conversation. "That sure brings back memories."

"Yes, that's him," Futopa nodded. "Everyone had heard of him, but we thought we had nothing to fear, being as remote as we were on such an inhospitable planet. We thought we'd never catch his attention." He steadily stood up. "But as it turns out, there was something quite valuable here on Imegga which caught his interest." He strolled over to the small back room's door and opened it up. "One moment, I'll show you."

"Wow," Trunks commented. "I had no idea Freeza's forces ever ventured to this part of our galaxy."

"Well, that scoundrel came to want Imegga very badly for that horrible planet trade enterprise of his," Futopa continued, as he emerged from the room carrying a cloth satchel. "And this is why." He produced and placed on the table what appeared to be a small, solid lump of rock. Its texture was smooth and reflective, with a slight purple tint. As Goku swiftly picked it up to examine it, he was surprised to discover that it felt somewhat soft and malleable in his hands.

"This stuff is both kinda hard and squishy at the same time," he said. "It feels like play-dough after it sits out too long and gets all dried."

"Grandpa, for crying out loud, they don't have-"

"Yes, that's exactly how I'd describe it," Futopa once again inexplicably concurred, this time prompting a mere exasperated sigh of defeat from Pan. "This, however, is just a little more valuable. It's called Enlium, a quite rare and unique metal."

"Well, it's rare in most places, anyway," Haquai informed them. "But our planet is chock full of it!"

"Yes, and although Imegga rarely has visitors, being so far out of the way," Futopa continued, "one way or another, the word got out about this, and one day there were a hundred armored Freeza troops crashing down across the planet, with orders to wipe us all out."

"Since they were after the Enlium, they were quite slow in their work so as not to damage the landscape too much," Haquai explained. "But slow or not, we could do nothing to resist such a large and deadly force. Things were looking hopeless, when one day they suddenly just up and quit!"

"As luck would have it," Futopa exclaimed, chuckling a bit." It seems Freeza had been defeated!" Nobody noticed a slight smile momentarily appear on Goku's face. "After that, his troops were all in an uproar without their leader, and they ran off with their conquest half-finished."

"And THAT'S when this Don Kia guy showed up, right?" Goku deduced.

"It was a little over ten years later," Futopa affirmed. "He's sort of a businessman himself, and he appeared with his own private hired militia in tow. The greedy fellow was after the Enlium as well, and he quickly took over."

"He was fortunate that Freeza's people never got to finish us Imeggans off," Haquai somberly exclaimed, "because now he had a workforce to mine the Enlium for him."

"Oh no," Pan said. "That's why you live in conditions like this?"

"That's right, my dear," Futopa agreed. "An old man like me isn't of much use, so Haquai and I are left to ourselves for the most part." He shook his head. "But all the younger folk... oh, they're treated barely any better than slaves, working long days in either the mines or the refineries. After they do all the work, Don Kia makes himself a pretty penny by shipping it out for sale."

"What's more, to prevent anyone from leaving, he set up that energy field around the planet," Haquai said.

"Oh?" Trunks exclaimed. "I guess that explains how we were brought down."

"Yes, and you're not the first, I'm afraid," Futopa said. "Time and time again, explorers and all other types of folk get too close and end up crashing. Don Kia's a rather paranoid fellow and does quite a lot to protect his little investment here."

"Can't you do anythin' to fight back?" Goku inquired, licking his bowl for the last remnants of soup.

"We've tried, believe me," Haquai explained. "Obviously he isn't nearly as fearsome as Freeza, and his troops are like harmless little bugs in comparison to Freeza's. Many of our younger men were strong enough to fight his troops, and we got pretty close to booting him out a few times."

"But then he got himself some extra, personal muscle, and suddenly," Haquai sighed, "we were helpless again."

"Huh?" Pan seemed confused. "You mean those two clowns who showed up when we crashed?"

"Oh, so you met Shilla and Ghel?" Futopa waved it off in amusement. "No, no, not them. Some of our children could probably take them on in a fight." He folded his hands together. "No, this time, Don Kia realized if he wanted true power, he'd have to pay for it. So he went out and found the strongest, most expensive bodyguard he could find."

"He's a real monster, this one," Haquai described as though she were telling a ghost story. "Much stronger than anyone in Freeza's invasion back then. Some say he's even stronger than Freeza himself!"

"Really?" Goku asked. He felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up a bit in excitement.

"Well it's just a rumor," Futopa said. "But if you ever met him in person, you'd probably believe it. His name is..."

* * *

"Redgic?"

"That's right, I said, where is Redgic? Do you have something wrong with your ears?"

Don Kia seemed awfully irritated for someone who was currently in the middle of a lengthy hot tub session. He lounged there in the large bubbly chamber against the wall-sized window on the far edge of an even larger chamber, actually quite comfortable despite his currently harsh manner of speaking. The unfortunate peon whom was the current focus of this verbal blasting stood there in the center of the room, stuttering in his unintentional lack of attention due to the uncomfortable circumstances.

"W-we don't know right now, sir," he replied. "He stepped out just before noon and nobody's seen him since."

"Well, make sure he's back on hand as soon as possible! I want him here in case the latest 'visitors' get ideas about taking their ship back!" Kia turned away and laid his head back against the cushioned edge of the tub, his potent amounts of bright red, currently damp hair lying against it. "He should know how this works by now. Who does he think is in charge, here?" Kia then turned his head ever so slightly and laid his gaze back upon the servant. "Well, what do you want?"

"S-sir?"

"You're the one who requested to enter, you buffoon!" Kia yelled again. "And during my evening bath time, no less! So there has to be a damned good reason, I trust?"

"Oh, yes, of course sir!" He nervously responded. "Um, Shilla and Ghel have arrived."

"Ah, as expected," Kia calmed down a bit. "Let them in."

The man complied, nodding then walking back over to the door. He stepped to one side as he pressed a button to open it up, allowing Kia's two distinctly recognizable aides to mosey in.

"Ah, welcome back from the desert, you two." Kia stood up in the tub, his tall, pale, and skinny form dripping as he stepped out. "What do you have to report?"

Trying not to look at places they ought not nor prefer to look, the two began to speak without missing a beat. "Well, sir, it was a bit out of the ordinary," Shilla explained, blushing a bit. "It was a pretty small ship of unknown origin, with a crew of only three. However, they proved too tough for our accompanying patrol, so we had to step in and take care of them ourselves."

"By which I assume you mean you had to use 'Plan B,' of course," Don Kia derived as he finally donned a towel, before noticing that the nameless employee from before was still present. "What are you still doing here?"

Ghel responded as the frightened flunky made a hasty retreat. "Er, yes. But in the end, we successfully subdued them and apprehended their ship," he continued. "It's down in the hangar now and scheduled for analysis and inventory first thing in the morning."

"I see. That will do for that, I suppose," Don Kia approved. "What of the crew?"

"Well, we sort of left them there unconscious," Shilla explained. "They've probably been picked up and taken in by some of the natives by now, as usual."

"Hmmm," Kia mused, as he turned his back to them and gazed out the window at the quiet city below. "I don't like the idea of leaving them to themselves, if they're that strong. Not without Redgic around." He turned back to them. "Send everyone available on a sweep through the city tonight, as soon as possible. I want them apprehended." He once again looked out the window. "Make sure they know what's in store for them if they resist."

* * *

"So Mr. Futopa," Trunks asked, finally getting a chance to examine the Enlium for himself as Goku and Pan were now otherwise occupied with Haquai. "What exactly makes this stuff so valuable? Is it used for currency or something?"

"Not quite, though it may as well be," the elderly Imeggan replied. "No, in fact, it's sought after for its industrial application. You see, it's a very potent electrical conductor."

"Really?" Trunks began looking at it in a whole new light.

"Yes, that lump is in its rawest form now, and you could easily break it apart or grind it up." He held up a finger as he continued. "But once refined, it becomes very sturdy. You could stand there and bend a wire of it back and forth all day without weakening it one bit. This makes it invaluable for use in all sorts of tiny circuitry."

Trunks looked at him and smiled. "You sound like you know your stuff in that regard."

"Ohoho," Futopa chuckled. "Not to brag, but I was quite a reputable and skilled mechanic back in my younger days, before things took such a bad turn." A twinkle appeared in his eye. "And I sense the same skill in you, young man."

"Well, not to brag," Trunks replied only partially in jest. "But the main reason I'm even on this trip is because I'm one of only two people on my planet who can both pilot AND repair our ship."

"I'm impressed," Futopa said, and gestured to the small side room from before. "Would you care to see my little workshop?" Trunks nodded enthusiastically, and the two stood up and entered. It was a bit cramped, not because it was really any smaller than the other room, but because it was filled to the brim with all sorts of tools and parts. Partially disassembled pieces of machinery of various origins and configurations were sitting and hanging all over the place on shelves and from the walls. Right in the middle of it all was a single workbench and chair, with a few tools still laid out for use in the most recent project.

"Wow," Trunks exclaimed. "This is surprisingly... expansive." He began poking around and studying various pieces as Futopa remained standing by the door. "Where do you get all this?"

"You could say I'm a bit of a scavenger," He replied. "When ships crash every so often, not everything is deemed worth towing away by Don Kia's men, and even those that are leave bits and pieces behind. So I often go out with my little scooter and cart," he pointed to them, perched in a corner of the room, "and look around outside the city limits for anything interesting." He gazed around. "Over the years, I guess I have built up quite a collection."

After a moment, Trunks' eyes were drawn to a particularly interesting item up on a shelf. He reached up to procure it and then look it over. "What's this?"

Futopa hobbled over and took a glance. "Oh, that stubborn little bugger."

It was a robot. It was fairly small, with the diameter of its round main body compartment only roughly the size of a dinner plate. Protruding from its upper sides were a pair of jointed arms, which lay dangling lifelessly as Trunks held it. A hood-like protrusion angled up from its back, over its top and to the front, upon which a single large, red "eye" was situated right in the middle, currently dark and inactive without power.

"Yes, it seems to be a robot of some kind," Futopa explained. "He came flying down, riding on some sort of flight module, which was too big for me to bring back. It looks like he was knocked out by the same energy field as all the ships, and I've been trying to get him fixed for over a year now. Darned if it's all too advanced for me, though. I'm afraid robotics isn't really my field."

"But it's my specialty," Trunks beamed, holding it up. "Mind if I take a crack at it?"

"Ohoho, go right ahead," Futopa acquiesced. "Take him out into the main room where the light's better. You can use my tools..."

"That's alright," Trunks said, as he swiftly walked out and sat back on the floor. "I have my own."

He placed the little robot onto the table, then reached over to his jacket which was lying against the wall. From its top pocket he procured his personal capsule case, which he snapped open and removed a particular capsule. He pressed the button on its top and gave it a light toss onto the floor beside him. With a muffled bang and a small puff of smoke, a plastic case roughly the size of a cereal box took form. As Trunks opened it up to rummage through its contents, Futopa marveled at what he'd just witnessed.

"What was that?" he inquired. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you just made that appear out of thin air!"

"Oh, these are called capsules," Trunks explained, holding his capsule case open as he unfastened a panel on the front of the robot. "My family's company makes them, and they're used everywhere back on Earth. You can reduce just about anything to mere molecules so you can carry it around easily."

"Astounding," Futopa was flabbergasted. "How do they work?"

Trunks simply stared for a minute. First at Futopa, then at his capsules, then back at the now opened-up robot.

"So, you weren't joking," he finally said. "This little guy really is advanced." He leaned down close and continued poking around inside. "But... I think I might be able to fix him. Looks like what got burned out here is some sort of power distribution node..."

"Hey, old-timer?" Goku hopped over. "Not that you guys haven't been real swell and all, but what would we have t' do if we wanted to leave this planet?"

Futopa raised an eyebrow. "Well, the most important things would be to get your ship back and disable that energy field. Otherwise, you really **can't** go anywhere. But trust me, lad," he somberly warned. "For your own good, don't go getting crazy ideas. You wouldn't be the first newcomer to attempt escape. You'd have to get through that Redgic hooligan first, and that's practically impossible."

"Hmm," Goku's curiosity began to morph into anticipation. "I wonder..."

"I think I've got it!" Trunks suddenly exclaimed. Pan and Haquai had since returned to the fold, each eagerly looking over Trunks' shoulder as he tinkered away. Trunks re-made one last connection within the little robot, prompting a sudden hum from within. The red eye began to dimly glow as power returned to it, signifying the robot's return to "life."

"Gigigigigigi..."

Trunks picked it back up and examined it as it began to make noise. Once satisfied that there was no more apparent damage or work to be done, he placed it down proudly on the table. "That solves that!"

No sooner had he done so than Goku pushed forward and picked it up himself, eagerly looking it over.

"Wow, an alien robot!" Goku ogled it as it continued to weakly wiggle its arms and make noise in protest. "Can we keep 'im?"

"Gigigigi... Energy levels critically low..."

"Grandpa," Pan scolded him for what seemed like the hundredth time that night. "Even if Trunks fixed it, it still belongs to-"

"Go right ahead," Futopa interrupted. "I'm sure you can get more use out of it than me, and goodness knows I couldn't repair him if he broke again!"

As Pan pouted over her lack of influence on anybody and Goku continued to jostle the robot around in amusement, Trunks took up the conversation again with Futopa.

"So then," he said. "Do you have any idea where our ship has been taken? That's our main problem at the moment."

"Well, all of them seem to be taken towards Don Kia's palace," Futopa admitted. "It's fixed up atop a cliff outside the main city here. The palace doesn't seem big enough for all of them, though. There've been dozens over the years."

"Nobody's sure what happens when they get there," Haquai followed up. "It's possible they're gutted and torn apart for salvage to sell and make more money for that miscreant. Or, and this is just a rumor, he's got some sort of large underground hangar for all of them. Finders keepers, you know..."

"Once we track it down," Trunks said, "I'm sure it won't be too hard to get it out of there."

"Lad," Futopa seemed depressed as he responded. "Please, like I said, don't go getting such wild ideas about escaping. You're up against unbeatable odds."

"It may be a tad depressing," Haquai followed, "but I'm afraid unless something comes along and changes things drastically for the better, you're stuck here. We've all come to accept it."

"Maybe we're that something," Pan suggested.

"Many others like you have said that," Futopa informed them. "See, we said we're accustomed to helping newcomers like you youngsters. But you won't find many of them around, because they usually get killed by rushing off to challenge Don Kia. He just sics his secret weapon on them right away, and it's over before it's even begun."

"You said this Redgic guy may even be stronger than Freeza, right?" Goku piped in.

"Well, it's just a rumor," Futopa said. "But really, when staring up at giants, who can say which is truly larger?"

"I don't know if he really is stronger than Freeza or not," Goku said, as he placed the little robot on the floor and stood up to address them all. "Not yet. But you know how Freeza was beaten all those years ago? Well, I'm-"

At that moment, there was a loud and desperate banging upon the front door, causing all present to jump a bit in surprise. Everyone nervously watched as Futopa steadily hobbled over and opened the door. Standing outside was a young Imeggan child. His age was easily evident not just by his even more miniscule height, but also his less bulbous cranium, and eyes that were dark and doll-like. He was breathing heavily, as if having exerted himself to get there in a great hurry.

"Oh, if it isn't little Atay," Haquai called cheerily from her seat.

"Mista' Futopa, Missuz Haquai," he gasped. "You've gotta do something!"

"What's the matter, lad?" Futopa asked. "You look right worn out!"

"It's Don Kia's soldiers," he hastily explained, starting to catch his breath. "They're all goin' through the city, knocking down everyone's doors. My mother sent me here to warn you b'fore they reached us!"

"How horrible!" Haquai began to panic. "What could they possibly be after?"

"Them!" Atay pointed at Goku, Trunks and Pan, who were gazing, flabbergasted. "Nobody knows why, but Don Kia wants them arrested!"

"What?" Pan exclaimed. "Why? What'd we do?"

"Maybe we beat his guys a little TOO easily earlier," Goku theorized.

"Well, whatever the reason," Trunks said, standing up, "we obviously can't stay here any longer tonight and put you in danger." Goku and Pan followed suit as Trunks addressed the elderly couple. "We'll leave right away, and get somewhere out of their reach while we come up with a plan. You should make sure to clean up any evidence that we were ever here."

"Are you sure?" Futopa inquired. "Where will you go? It gets too cold out in the desert at night, and there's nowhere else to go without transportation..."

"Actually, I don't think we need to go that far at all." Trunks turned to his comrades. "I think Don Kia making the first move here could work out well for us, don't you agree?"

"You mean as a distraction?" Goku smirked. "While he's got all his troops out here, we sneak in right under his nose and get our ship back!"

"But how are we gonna find it?" Pan said. "We don't know exactly where it is, and it'd take too long to just explore until we stumble across it."

"Don't forget, Pan," Trunks smiled. "Maybe we can't track the ship itself, but there's something IN the ship that we can pinpoint instantly!"

"Of course!" Goku said, grinning as he pounded his fist. "The four-star Dragon Ball is still inside!"

"Dragon... Ball?" Haquai commented curiously.

"That's right," Trunks said, kneeling down and reaching over to his jacket on the floor as he continued to speak to the others. "And before we left the ship earlier, I had the foresight to grab the-"

He suddenly paused, and a confused expression replaced the former confidence on his face. "-Dragon Radar?"

He pulled the Dragon Radar out of his jacket's largest pocket. Except, it wasn't JUST the Dragon Radar, but also the little robot from before. To be precise, it was the little robot with his entire main chassis opened up horizontally like a gaping mouth, within which lay the Dragon Radar.

Which then instantly disappeared into the little robot's gaping maw.

Everyone simply stared in shocked disbelief as the robot's body clicked shut, and all kinds of horrible whirring and buzzing and beeping noises could be heard from within. The robot shook violently for a moment, then calmed down to a low vibration before becoming completely still.

Then suddenly, with a loud tone, its previously dim red eye became bright and lively as it sprung to life and leaped out of Trunks's hand. It floated in mid-air for a moment as a circular plate on its bottom opened up. From within it extended a small bulbous module from which further extended a pair of skinny, segmented legs similar to its arms. It landed on the ground and raised its arms up in what resembled joyful celebration.

"Material consumption complete!" It cheered. "Energy restored!"


	12. More Money, More Problems

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED**

Chapter Twelve – _"More Money, More Problems"_

_In the course of a single day, his world had crumbled around him. Literally._

_The young boy limped his way through what remained of the wrecked streets, struggling to climb over debris, abandoned vehicles, and even bodies. He eventually reached a high point, ascending a pile of rubble to attain a good view of the surrounding landscape. Despite it all, Dibbet remained a truly beautiful planet. He could still see the rolling hills of purplish-blue grass, the trees which reached above with their puffy, wind-scattered branches atop tall, flexible trunks, the distant great lakes which shimmered in the morning sun and whose waves lapped against the rocky cliffs with the breeze, and most wondrous of all, the luminescent crystals within the rock, which bathed the entirety of the vast cliff sides in a soothing blue glow at night as they absorbed the light of the moon._

_Dibbet's moon had, eons ago, been viewed and worshiped as a caring and protective deity, always watching over her people in the dark of night and casting her heavenly protection upon them. In the past thousands of years, the Dibbetan people had all but outgrown such old myths, though still held no less of a deep appreciation for its beauty and light. So, it was a cruel twist of fate, all things considered, that the moon would become the herald of her people's destruction._

_It was just two nights ago when this all started. The sky was clear, and the moon and the crystals were casting their usual glow over everything and everyone. All was peaceful. Until suddenly, in the middle of the night, they arrived._

_There were five. The night watch had reported seeing five small, spherical, unassuming objects, obviously spacecraft in hindsight, fall from the sky on streaks of red light, crashing down off on the horizon with a thunderous boom. It had awoken everyone in the city, who began to wonder what was going on and whether or not they should go looking for the new visitors. But they never got the chance._

_The boy had seen it from this very same vantage point on that first night. Everyone in the town had. There was no time allowed to make sense of the situation or identify the newcomers. Nobody had even seen their faces. For, mere minutes after they had arrived, they changed. What had presumably been normal-sized people suddenly grew and transformed into hideous, towering beasts, covered in fur and with glowing red eyes, gaping fang-filled maws, and beastly hands which could - and did - shatter the beautiful cliffs in a single blow. They breathed beams of deathly light, which scattered out in all directions like a rain of fire, demolishing much of the landscape around them. Hundreds in the city had been killed just in that first night, but those who remained breathed sighs of woeful relief as the distant monsters stampeded in the opposite direction._

_Their respite from the destruction didn't last long, however. The monsters spent the entire day thereafter stomping across the planet, relentlessly following the night and the moon as they thoroughly destroyed every single trace of civilization they could find. Survivors and escapees tried to stay ahead of them, and many who reached the boy's home city recounted their situations and described the monsters. Despite their beast-like savagery, they still seemed somehow intelligent. There was a sense of purpose and direction in what they were doing, as they meticulously and carefully took as much time as they could to make sure that they killed as many of the Dibbetans they encountered as possible. What was more, they were clearly making the cities a target, often leaving nothing but craters or rubble behind. It became all too clear that they were more than just a force of nature. They were here on a mission: to wipe out the Dibbetan people._

_Nothing could be done. What few space-faring capabilities the Dibbetans had were borrowed from other races in limited amounts; they had only made contact with beings from outside their world mere decades ago. The lucky few who could escape to space, did. Some fled underground, only to be crushed to death. Some fled to the mountains, only to die in those rains of fire. Most could do little more than try to stay ahead like all the others, and many of them futilely congregated in the boy's city. But now they were all dead._

_The boy didn't need anyone to tell him this. He could feel it. He had always been able to feel people around him, whether they were near or far. He could recognize people he knew closely just by the unique sensation they gave him, and he could even tell if something was wrong with them by what level of vitality they radiated. He had even been the first to realize that his mother was bearing his youngest sister, when he detected the small, extra twinkle of new life resonating from within her. It was a sixth sense, as if he had a second, transcendental sense of sight and people glowed like flickering candle flames._

_But now there was nobody. For the first time in his young life, the boy felt completely alone. His family, gone. His caretaker, gone. His teachers and friends, gone. He didn't dare look closely at any of the charred or broken bodies in the streets, for fear that he might recognize their now-lifeless shells._

_He could only feel **them**, and it was a sickening feeling._

_The boy didn't know for sure why he was the only one left. He had been hiding last night, like everyone else. Separated from his family, accompanied only by his caretaker. She had hidden herself along with him in a basement, holding him closely and desperately trying to encourage him to not be afraid while barely managing to disguise her own terror. He appreciated her efforts, as useless as they may have been, and tried his best for her sake to not pay attention to the rapidly-disappearing multitudes of lives above and around them._

_Then suddenly, the entire room around them disintegrated. A bright red light enveloped the boy's entire field of vision, and stinging, burning pain encompassed every square inch of his body. He watched in horror as his caretaker was vaporized, the darkly-contrasting outline of her body disappearing out of sight as the energy burned her away to nothing in a matter of seconds._

_That was the last thing the boy remembered. The next thing he knew, it was morning, and he awoke to an unsettling calm all around. He had crawled out from the dusty crater which had once been his hideaway and begun on his aimless journey through the city._

_No, that wasn't quite right. It wasn't aimless. He was making a beeline for them. For, in fact, there was a second element to his uniqueness. The boy was very powerful. The same life energy which he could sense from others lay within him as well. It was somewhat more difficult for the boy to detect it from himself, but it was unmistakably there. And there was a lot of it._

_When he focused it, he discovered that he could do great things. He could increase his physical strength many times over what even the toughest Dibbetan adults could muster. He could expel the energy outward to light flames, clear obstacles, and perform all other sorts of useful tasks and tricks. And its ability to toughen him up was, the boy now realized, undoubtedly what allowed him to survive last night. The Dibbetans around him had called it a gift. The priests of the old ways once called it a miraculous endowment from above. The scientists usually called it a rare mutation. But most interestingly of all, the few rare alien visitors whom he'd met had called it something else entirely: Battle Power._

_For the first time in his life, the boy was about to put that definition of his gift to the test. When the invaders had arrived that night, he could feel them. When they transformed, their life energy grew to such fearsome and inconceivable levels that the boy was rendered almost catatonic in terror. But now they were different. Their mighty energy had shrunk considerably. While it was now at a level still far stronger than any Dibbetan... so was the boy's._

_As the boy now drew nearer and nearer to his foes, he did his best to conceal his own life energy, dulling it down and masking it as one might wrap a shade around a metaphysical lantern. He took down to his hands and knees and slowly, quietly began to crawl atop a crumbled segment of rock, formerly a part of the city's outer wall. He peered over top of it and for the first time laid his eyes upon the killers of his people._

_All five of them were lounging about, relaxing in the morning sunlight of the dawn after their slaughter. Though apparently all of the same race, they were of different shapes and sizes. A tall male. A medium male. A bulky male. A fat male. A slender female. They had tails like the boy and every other former Dibbetan, though theirs were somewhat shorter and covered in bushy fur, and the near-similarities ended there. Instead of the uniformly regal, light blue skin of the Dibbetan race, these creatures were assorted shades of pink and tan and grey. They had small, protruding ears compared the majestic, dome-like lobes of Dibbetan skulls, and their heads were, for the most part, adorned with crazily-shaped, dark hair._

_The boy was normally a peaceful, happy lad. But having your race annihilated literally overnight can change you. Now, for possibly the first time in his life, he was seething with anger and hatred. It didn't matter to him that he had nowhere to go, nor that there was nobody left to save. Even the very real and likely possibility that he wouldn't win could deter him. He was bent on revenge. He would kill these people and avenge his dead race. It was all he COULD do._

_In one sudden burst of effort, the boy screamed. He brought all his energy back up to the surface as he jumped up from his hiding place and charged, running headfirst towards the group. He evidently succeeded in surprising them, as they could do little more than turn to look at him as he attacked. The boy lunged at the closest one to him, the fat one leaning against the hillside. He caught the brute unprepared as he was still attempting to stand and turn around, landing a powerful punch to his flabby jawline._

_"Oof!"_

_The others leaped to their feet as their comrade was heaved backwards by the blow and landed on his rear. They made no move to act as the boy lurched forward, still intent on the one he'd attacked, and merely closed the gap to surround the two of them. One of them, the tall, calm-looking one, was the first to speak._

_"Well, what do we have here?" he said. "I was positive we'd wiped out all the natives. We nuked everything and everyone we found!"_

_The female reached up to her face and operated some sort of device she wore over her left ear and eye. It beeped for a few seconds and displayed some sort of numeric reading._

_"Well, this might explain it," she said. "His Battle Power rating is just over three thousand."_

_"That's far higher than any other natives we came across," the bald, tough-looking one declared. "They were all weaklings. He must be some sort of mutant prodigy to have power like that."_

_"No kidding?" The fat one exclaimed, back on his feet. "Well, too bad. It's not enough!"_

_In one mighty, surprisingly swift movement, he jumped forward and landed a powerful sweeping punch to the boy's stomach. The young Dibbetan was downed immediately and fell to his knees while clutching his stomach in agony. A moment later, and the sole of the fat alien's boot was suddenly atop his head, pinning it to the ground and getting increasingly heavier by the second. The boy made no effort to resist, just as much from finally realizing the futility as from his immobilizing pain._

_"Thanks a bunch, kid," the fat one mockingly told him. "You saved us the trouble of doing quality control. So long!" He began to press down even harder._

_"Wait."_

_The fat alien halted and considerably lessened the pressure on the young Dibbetan's skull. He then turned to face the medium-sized male with wild hair, evidently their leader, who had just spoken._

_"Yeah, Bardock?"_

_"Don't kill him," he commanded. "I've got a better idea."_

* * *

Redgic was jolted back to attention when he sensed it.

Two very noticeably strong powers, and they were close. He was somewhat surprised at their sudden appearance, since, due to his meditation, he should have detected them coming while they were much, much further away than that. Then he realized the reason. It wasn't that the powers had not existed before then, just that they had only now become large enough to sense. That was intriguing.

He remained in his cross-legged sitting position, facing the sun. His tail whipped back and forth in an instinctive effort to cool itself and the rest of him, and he tried to ignore the beads of sweat upon his head as he continued to meditate. Here on the small, dry planet closest to this star system's sun, the harsh and hot conditions were perfect for such an activity, to fine-tune and focus his Ki. Redgic's frequent trips to this barren rock made his boring job on the other barren rock almost worthwhile.

He expanded his senses outward, in the direction of the large powers. After a moment or two of focus, he determined their actual position. They were two planets over, on the third, most hospitable world of the system and on the opposite side of Imegga from Redgic. They were seemingly engaged in combat of some form or another, though only between themselves. Redgic decided that, at the moment, they weren't worth worrying about or interrupting his training over. Regardless, he still had a job to do, and so he kept an "eye" on them. If they decided to actually approach Imegga, then he would, as was duly expected of him, head there as well. For the time being, however, he turned his attention back to his meditation.

He tried, at least. But no matter what, he was now distracted and puzzled over his prior, unexpected train of thought. Why had such old, unpleasant memories resurfaced now?

* * *

Several hours later, there was more watching from a distance going on, though this time by several people within a somewhat smaller range.

Pan and Trunks sat high atop the cliff, looking down from its peak upon the sprawling Imeggan "city" below them. The term "city" could only be used very loosely, as it was made up of little more than vast arrays of shacks, many interconnected and stacked upon each other. Half of it was built alongside and even upon the steep cliffs themselves, reflecting how the native Imeggans were given very little room to live. Not surprising, since Imegga's land was apparently considered so valuable.

Right now, in particular, the land was being treated with far more respect than its inhabitants. A veritable battalion of Don Kia's private army were in the process of sweeping through the settlement, roughing up the natives and tearing apart homes in search of the three threatening visitors who'd arrived that afternoon. But they wouldn't find them anywhere now.

As Trunks somberly watched the situation below, Pan was more focused on something else. She sat on the ground as she held the small, troublesome robot whom they'd met and Trunks had repaired only ten minutes ago. She was quite annoyed and shook the little fellow violently as she spoke to it.

"Come on, you jerk!" she yelled. "Give us back our Dragon Radar!"

"Gigigigigigi!" It winced in protest. "Materials absorbed! Materials absorbed!"

"Pan!" Trunks scolded her before snatching the robot away. He examined it closely. "There's no need to be so rough on him. Artificial intelligences have feelings, too."

"You're just going easy on him 'cuz you fixed him," she sulked.

"Yeah, maybe," he admitted. "But even so, the more damage he takes, the less likely it is that I may be able to open him up and get the Dragon Radar back later. If we really have to, we can always go back to Earth for a new one. It'd only take my mom a few days to build, at most."

"But we already said goodbye and everything," Pan lamented. "It'd be so lame. Besides, my dad might notice that my mom didn't pack ALL the school books he thought she did..."

At that moment, they were rejoined by Goku, who zipped into existence beside them seemingly out of thin air. He lowered his hand from his forehead and turned to address them.

"Yep," he informed them. "I saw the same thing happenin' in all the other Imeggan towns."

"And you're sure nobody noticed you?" Trunks inquired, as he handed the robot back to Pan. "It'd be bad if they saw any hint of us."

"Nope, I was careful," Goku assured him. "I kept my Ki hidden too, in case anyone had scouters."

"Good. It was a close enough call escaping from the old couple's home on such short notice," Trunks recounted. "We're lucky you can still use Instant Movement even though your body's been changed."

"Of course I can teleport," Goku remarked, a bit confused. "Why couldn't I?"

"So what are we going to do now?" Pan asked. "Without the Dragon Radar to tell us exactly where the ship is, our plan is too risky."

_Beep. Beep._

"That's right, we can't just charge in headfirst, Ki blasts blazing," Trunks pondered, folding his arms in thought. "If it takes us a long time to find the ship, then who knows what they might do to it while we're occupied fighting them."

_Beep. Beep._

"And sneakin' around to look for it would probably take too long too," Goku figured. "By then, all the soldiers would be back an' we'll have missed our shot."

_Beep. Beep._

"Oh, will you shut up?" Pan snapped at the robot again. "It's your fault we're in this mess now, so don't make things worse with your constant stupid beeping."

_Beep. Beep._

"Hey, wait a second," Goku suddenly realized something. "That sounds familiar."

"You don't suppose..." Trunks hastily stepped over and took the robot from Pan once again, looking it over. After a moment or two of pensive confusion, he flipped the robot around to examine its back - upon which, just then, a large circular panel opened up to reveal a very familiar, green, grid-like readout.

_Beep. Beep._

Blinking upon the screen in rhythm with the beeps was a single, large yellow dot. Next to it was a small arrow containing the number, '2.'

"It's the Dragon Radar!" Pan was the first to state the obvious.

"Incredible!" Trunks exclaimed. He turned the robot back over and spoke to it. "So you can install the functions of whatever devices you eat? That's amazing!"

"Dragon Radar, integrated!" it replied, almost gleefully. "Dragon Radar, integrated!"

"Looks like the plan's back on, guys!" Goku wore a renewed expression of determination as he pounded his fist into his hand. "We'd better hurry before it's too late!"

* * *

_The large, angular shoulder blades on the new model uniforms certainly looked intimidating. But regardless of how easily they bended and stretched, they seemed so obtrusive and unnecessary. He raised up one arm to check, and his worries were confirmed._

_"What do you think, Redgic?"_

_The teenaged Dibbetan turned around. The being who had just joined him in the outpost locker room and spoken was a comrade of his - an alien with purple skin and a fish-like face who was younger than himself by only a few years._

_"Kwi," Redgic noted, before turning back to look at his own uniform and raising his arm. "I don't like it. The shoulder blades hit my ears."_

_"Haha," the whisker-chinned youth remarked in his usual snitty manner. "Well, I guess they can't please everyone, with so many different races working for Lord Freeza."_

_"I suppose not," Redgic dryly answered. "I'll just stick to the older models."_

_"Suit yourself," Kwi shrugged, casually opening his own locker. He then turned his head and spoke to Redgic again, this time with a more intense and eager tone. "Oh! But speaking of races worse off, guess what happened this morning?"_

_"What?" Redgic humored him, not particularly paying any actual attention._

_"The Saiyans got wiped out!"_

_That attitude changed now. Redgic paused for a moment._

_"... What?"_

_"The report came right from Lord Freeza himself!" Kwi explained. "The planet was hit head-on by a giant meteor! What are the odds of that?"_

_"..."_

_"They're still taking a headcount of any survivors, but so far the only ones they know for sure are Prince Vegeta and that muscle-head steward of his. It just HAD to be that runt, didn't it?"_

_"..."_

_"Serves 'em right, if you ask me," Kwi chipperly continued as he rummaged through his belongings. "I never did like those dirty monkeys. Always bragging about their power, letting it get to their heads that a FEW of them had gotten so strong. I can't wait to rub it in little princey-boy's face lat-"_

_"Enough!"_

_Kwi jumped a bit at the sudden, uncharacteristic display of emotion from Redgic. He watched in stunned and equally-rare silence as his teammate slammed his locker shut so hard that he almost broke it, then walked away without a word, exiting the room out into the outpost's hallways._

_"Yeesh," remarked a short, bulbous alien from the other side of the room. "What's gotten on his nerves all of a sudden?"_

_"Shut up, Cado."_

_"No, I'm Avo," the plump blue being replied in annoyance, before pointing to his red-skinned brother beside him. "He's Cado."_

_"Don't care. Shut up anyway."_

* * *

"Where is he?"

"W-we still don't know, sir." The guard was taken aback by his boss' temper tantrum. He didn't really know why. After five years of working for him on this planet, one would think anyone would get used to Don Kia's selfish little outbursts. "We haven't seen him since he landed."

"Well, look harder!" Don Kia continued to belt as the two briskly walked down one of the expensively adorned hallways of his luxurious estate. "If he's on this planet, then I want him in front of me within ten minutes! How can you **not** find someone as strong as Redgic with those power-scanning devices of yours?"

"Sir, like we've detailed before, Mister Redgic is capable of somehow masking his Battle Power," the guard tried to explain for the dozenth time. "If he does that, then there's no way for our scouters t-"

"I don't want excuses, I want Redgic!" The billionaire brat stopped in place, turned to face the guard, and stamped his foot like a child. "You idiots have failed to track down these new intruders, and for all we know they're already on their way here to kill me! So if I don't have my only actual worthwhile bodyguard in front of me within ten minutes, then I swear I'm going to have each and every one of you fired out of a-"

"I'm right here."

Both individuals leapt in fright at the sudden sound of the calm and low, but authoritative, voice. They turned to see Redgic standing off to their left, leaning against the wall of a small side hallway with his arms folded. He stood up straight to face them and spoke again.

"What's going on?"

"Ah, Redgic, good!" Don Kia happily but anxiously addressed him. "Well, as I was saying, we've got a small handful of intruders on the planet who crashed some distance away from the city this afternoon. We took their ship, but they were too much for Shilla and Ghel to handle in a fight." He waved his arms a bit. "So now these knuckleheads can't find them at all, and I think they may be coming after me, so you have to be on high alert in case they-"

"Don't worry," Redgic interrupted, speaking in his typical cool and commanding manner. "I noticed them earlier. I'll remain alert, so just stay inside out of danger." He began to walk away down the hall, but then paused to turn and look back over his shoulder. "And one more thing."

"Y-yes?" Don Kia timidly responded.

"Don't give me orders."

* * *

The best way they could figure it, Don Kia's palace must have been more lavish on the inside, as the outside was certainly not as glitzy and glamorous as they would have imagined. It seemed very militaristic and fortress-like in its outward design, with a stacked and layered overall structure which resembled the sturdy stacks of sheet rock one would find out in the Imeggan desert. There were very few windows, save for several large ones on a particularly bulbous section on top, almost definitely Don Kia's private living area. The entire thing sat neatly atop a huge rock mesa and was surrounded by a few smaller, separate buildings, most likely barracks or operation centers for his militia. A few wide, winding paths were set into the rock, which twisted their way around and down the landscape to the Imeggan city below and to the south.

Goku, Trunks, and Pan were quietly approaching from the east, keeping their Ki suppressed down to practically nothing. Using small, quick and undetectable bursts of mere physical strength, they made long, dashing leaps across the landscape until they finally came close to Don Kia's estate. They stopped to examine the place and determine where to go next. Goku stared up at it in wonder.

"Wow, it looks like some kinda castle," he noted. "You think he's got a throne room for himself?"

"Yeah, maybe," Trunks said, then turned to Pan. "What's it look like?"

Pan was holding the little robot and glanced down at its open back. "It looks like it's... what's this little line next to it mean, I don't know... ?"

"I haven't had much luck with castles," Goku informed them. "First one I ever saw had a Dragon Ball in it, too. But it was on fire. The whole castle was, I mean."

"That's nice, Goku," Trunks said, as he instructed Pan. "Ah, that's a new little feature, it helps show the three-dimensional coordinates, like elevation on a map..."

"Then there was another one just like it, and that caught on fire too," Goku continued idly chattering. "I think so, anyway. I might've dreamed that one. And then the next castle was all big an' spikey, and I think that one all got sucked into some sorta big, evil, magic dimension hole..."

"Grandpa, for goodness' sake," Pan scolded him again, "will you please focus? We're doing something important, here!"

"Well, I don't see why it's gotta take so long," he replied, pouting a bit.

"So if that's how it works, then," Pan examined the Dragon Radar readout, "that means the ship is under the ground?"

"Well, that explains where they all go," Trunks said. "The estate's high placement up on this mesa must mean there's some sort of storage area underneath. The whole thing is probably hollow, with how many ships he's supposedly taken."

"And I can sense people in there, too," Goku said. "Let's go!"

A few seconds later, the three Saiyans and one robot materialized inside and looked around. It was immediately obvious that Trunks was correct, and that the large cliff upon which Don Kia's luxurious dwelling sat was indeed hollow. The inside was massive, wide and open, but by no means empty. The entire cavern was divided up into three distinct layers, the middle of which they had just teleported to, by a series of round, metal, heavy-duty platforms. They extended all the way to the cavern walls, with a large round opening in the middle of each. These openings all lined up and led upwards to an enormous hatch in the cavern ceiling, which was no doubt where all the spaceships came in.

Indeed, the entire place was one big spaceship garage. A wide assortment of craft of all different shapes and sizes were arranged all throughout the area, parked upon the metal platforms. Some were sleek and aerodynamic, while for others, it seemed as if nothing short of a wish to Shenlong could ever get them off the ground. Some were shiny and appeared incredibly advanced and complicated, while others looked as if they were tossed together with scrap. As they ducked behind the large landing leg of a random, unknown cone-shaped ship, the three travelers looked around in wonder.

"Wow," Goku noted. "He's probably got more ships hoarded up in here than the ol' turtle guy's got nudie magazines!" He then smiled and laughed dryly. "Hahaha... Naw, I'm kiddin'. No way."

"Grandpa, hush," Pan held up a finger and gestured for him to be quiet. "One, because, ew. Two, because we're trying to be stealthy, remember?"

"Oh, right," Goku said, much more quietly this time. "I had t' lock on to someone in here to teleport, but I tried to make sure we were far away as I could."

"Well, it seems to have worked. We're in the clear," Trunks said, peering around. "Our helpful friend is on the other side of this level but pretty far off, and there's only... three more in here altogether."

"I see our ship!" Goku squeaked, before catching himself and quieting down again. "It's over there!"

The other two followed his pointing finger and also spied it. It was, as it was more-or-less designed to do, sitting upon its extended landing arms, off on the other side of the level. It was right upon the ledge of the round, wide opening, seeming as though it had only just recently been brought in and not yet found a "permanent" location within the hangar to sit and rot - nor would it ever.

"Good job," Trunks said. "Now, let's make sure to keep our power masked while we sneak over there. It'll be much easier to retrieve it if we aren't noticed."

The three of them, with Pan still carrying the little robot, began steadily making their way on foot around the perimeter of the level, hugging the dark corners of the cavern wall and the various parked spacecraft for cover. After a few minutes, they found themselves ducking behind a small stack of cargo containers, and with a new-found problem. The one alien security guard, whom Goku had used for teleportation purposes just prior, had managed to mosey his way over to their ship. By mere virtue of it being the newest model in the lot, he had decided to slack a bit on his patrol and idly examine it.

"Crap," Trunks whispered. "This just got a little more complicated."

"It's only one guy," Pan said. "We could easily rush him and knock him out before he does anything."

"Yeah," he replied. "But if this Don Kia guy is as paranoid as the old folks said, then who knows what other monitoring systems his guards might have in place..."

Thoroughly disinterested in all the slow-paced debating and planning, Goku began lazily looking around. He gazed up and down and got a bit dizzy from the heights of the cavern above and below them. He examined a few of the random spaceships, wondered how they worked, then stopped when it started to give him a headache. For a moment, he even found himself unable to look away from a single scraggly hair sticking up and standing out from the various tufts on top of Pan's head. But after a minute, something else caught his attention.

The ship right next to them, from which these cargo crates had evidently come, had the roughly round and concave shape of a slightly elongated, upside-down bowl. It was quite large, easily twice as expansive from front tip to back as their own vessel, and it looked fast. It had a slick, shiny chrome-like finish to its outer hull, through which only a few small windows allowed glimpses to or from the inside. The inner underside of the "bowl" was more complicated, containing not only the three landing struts which arced down and out to the ground, but scores of hatches, machines, and tools for science, war, or what have you.

But, what really stood out was the ball. From dead center within the dome-like inside of the ship, protruding straight downward and hanging but a few feet off the ground, was a big, reflective metal ball. Its purpose was a complete mystery, but it was striking - not just for its own shape, but for what lay upon it.

A big, shiny, red button.

Goku knew he shouldn't. He knew that whatever that button did, it would surely draw attention to them. He knew that, when he pressed that button, the ship's engines would rev up, or it would start shooting lasers, or blow itself up, or magically materialize a mariachi band, or Dende-only-knew-what. He already knew deep down the anger and disappointment which would come from Trunks and Pan when, if he pushed that button, their presence would be exposed. So Goku clenched his eyes shut, hardening his resolve and telling himself that, no matter what, he would not press that button.

He then opened his eyes back up to find that he already did.

Goku recoiled his hand back away from the button in shock, having evidently walked over to it in a daze and done the deed without even being consciously aware of it. He stood there for a moment, his heart racing as he glanced around nervously. Miraculously, the forbidden act seemed to have affected nothing save for the button itself, which now glowed dimly. The rest of the ship remained totally quiet and inactive.

"Grandpa!" Pan noticed him and harshly whispered from their hiding spot while waving him down. "What are you doing? Get back here!"

He nodded and began to scamper back over. But as he passed the edge of the bowl-ship, there was a sudden click, whirr, and woosh. A boarding platform folded out from its seamless position within the ship's ventral hull, arced out and down, and landed on Goku's head with considerable force. Goku was caught completely by surprise.

"Yeeeoow!"

That had done it. Goku's sudden and loud cry of pain echoed through the entire cavern, and their cover was now instantly and completely blown. The lazy guard was obviously the first to take notice, and he turned around to see Trunks and Pan react by jumping out into the open in his direction. As quickly as he could, he reached down and pressed a small button on a wrist-worn device of his. The very next second, Pan's knee made contact with his face, and he was unconscious.

But he did his job with that one little button press. It was evidently some sort of simultaneous alarm and homing beacon, and the very moment after he activated it, the entire area immediately around the Earthlings' ship was lit up with bright lights, while red emergency ones began pulsating throughout the rest of the cavern and complex above.

If Goku still had a tail, it would have been tucked between his legs in shame as he meekly walked out to join Trunks and Pan beside the ship.

"Sorry, guys..."

"Damnit, Grandpa!" Pan yelled at him, obviously no longer concerned about staying quiet. "What were you thinking?"

"We can assign blame later," Trunks cut in. "Our plan has changed, so we've got to act." He pointed to the two of them in order, assigning duties. "Pan, go inside and retrieve the four-star ball. Goku, get ready to protect the ship. I'm going to have to work quickly now to get it out of here."

"Roger!" The two of followed their orders. While still towing along the little Dragon Radar robot, Pan hovered up to press the entry button, then disappeared within the ship once it opened up. Goku flew up and landed upon its upper hull, then glanced upwards.

"Here they come!"

* * *

_The resort-like outpost on Planet Freeza No. 50 was certainly majestic. Its towering and angled castle-like spires invoked an atmosphere and aesthetic of almost natural beauty, while also holding a deep sense of irony, considering what it represented. It dominated nearly every square acre of the small island upon which it lay, and was the only man-made structure in not just the general area, but also on the entire planet. Furthermore, its inhabitants were the only living, sentient beings on the planet as well. Those who commissioned its construction had made sure of that._

_As was conventional for such an establishment, there was currently a high volume of spacecraft traffic coming to and from it, with larger craft hovering down and lifting up, and smaller one-man pods rocketing skyward and crashing down onto landing pads at any given time of the day. One such pod in particular was now careening towards the base, sooner than was expected._

_The pod's built-in navigation system interacted with that of the base's communications array, working to not only keep the pod on course, but also to control the speed and angle of its descent. Exactly as they were designed to, the massive, pillow-like receiving pads out upon the landing deck cushioned the impact of the small sphere, while a system of high-powered electromagnetic weaving within them grappled onto it, ensuring that it would not simply bounce back up and crash disastrously. After the initial impact's energy dissipated, all was still for a moment._

_Then, the narrow hatch with one small, round window in front of the pod opened up, revealing its pilot. The tall, big-eared, blue-skinned being leisurely and calmly climbed out, his long tail whipping around a bit as it reflexively recovered from the tight fit within the craft. The pilot cricked his neck once as he began walking towards the base's entrance and the small company of lower-level soldiers who stood at attention, awaiting his arrival._

_"Lord Redgic," one of them spoke up. "You've returned way ahead of schedule! Was there some sort of problem with Planet Fygg?"_

_"No," he replied as he passed them. "No problem at all. What's all the commotion around here?"_

_"Lord Freeza himself has stopped by, sir," another guard answered. "His ship needed a layover for supplies and refueling on its way back to Planet Freeza No. 10."_

_"Is that so?" Redgic noted. He walked away, towards the wide doors leading inside. "I'll go see if I can report to him in person, then."_

_A short walk later, and Redgic found himself within the spacious main hall of the luxurious compound. It was a rest and recreation area, with a wide array of benches, tables, and food facilities, where guests and off-duty soldiers, such as the mere dozen or so currently present, could relax and enjoy the sights to their hearts' content. Those 'sights' were certainly worth enjoying; one massive wall of the two-story chamber was composed of entirely nothing but wide glass window panes, allowing a theater-like view of the beautiful landscape outside. The hall was at the planet's ocean level, and the windows and floor were separated by a gap several meters wide. Clear, sparkling water was allowed to flow in from outside like a natural fountain, splashing and bubbling as it went under the floor to continue on its way deep beneath the facility._

_Redgic casually walked over to a spot near the window and rested his hands upon the waist-high railing which stood as a safety barrier between the floor and the water. He gazed longingly out to the serene, sunny landscape, which calmed his nerves, and he knew exactly why. Something about these islands reminded him of home. The gorgeous, expansive lake beside his home city, back on Planet Dibbet - or rather, Planet Freeza No. 219, as it was known nowadays - flashed into his memory whenever he saw this planet's expansive ocean, making it one of his favorites to return to after a mission. But his moment of peace lasted only for that: a moment._

_"Redgic!"_

_Choosing, as always, to hide his propensity to naturally feel energy rather than rely on a scouter, Redgic acted as though he had not sensed the newcomers as he turned to face them. Before him stood a certain small group of individuals who were famous within the ranks of Freeza's forces. Immediately noticeable with his bright red skin and long, fluffy white hair was Jheese. Towering above him was the tall and dark blue-skinned reptilian named Butta. Behind them all, due to his bulk, was the muscular Recoome. Finally, in the lead in front of them all, was the purple and horn-headed alpha male of the bunch, Ginyu._

_"More surprise guests," Redgic commented. "What are you all doing here?"_

_"We're just along for the ride with Lord Freeza right now," Jheese answered. "But we've been on a little information-gathering mission of our own at the same time."_

_"Or rather, a people-gathering mission!" Recoome chipperly added._

_Redgic furrowed his brow a bit, seeing where this was going. "I see."_

_"We just received word of your conquest on Planet Fygg," Ginyu himself noted. "That was very impressive work! You wiped the whole thing clean all on your own!"_

_"And in less than a week, no doubt!" Butta commented. "That takes some doing!"_

_"So?" Redgic asked, though he already knew the answer. "What does this have to do with you?"_

_"Well, we talked it over, and we have come to a decision!" Ginyu extended a hand. "Congratulations, Redgic! You've officially earned yourself a spot on the Ginyu Special Squad!"_

_Redgic was unamused. "... The what?"_

_"An elite squad comprised of Lord Freeza's strongest and most talented soldiers!" Recoome enthusiastically explained. "Alone, we're already living wrecking machines!"_

_"But together as a team," Butta said, "we'll be absolutely unstoppable!"_

_"... No thanks," Redgic said, attempting to turn back to the scenery._

_"Wait, don't answer yet!" Ginyu protested. "Let's show him, boys!"_

_At his signal, all four of them jumped back and spread out a few meters to allow themselves more room. One by one, they each announced themselves and struck a pose._

_"Recoome~!" On the right side of the formation, the orange-haired brute leaned and extended his arms out to his left._

_"Butta~!" The blue giant mirrored his movements._

_"Jheese~!" Right next to Butta, the shortest member knelt down on one knee and raised his arms in a 'Y' shape._

_"Ginyu~!" Finally, the leader stood in the middle... backwards, leaning down to show his face beneath his own butt._

_"Together, we are... !"_

_Speaking in unison, they each all shifted closer together in one fluid movement. Recoome turned around, facing his back to Redgic and looking over his shoulder. Butta stood up high on one leg, his arms spread wide. Jheese pumped one fist straight up into the air. Finally, Ginyu (thankfully) turned back and squat down, spreading his arms out to each side._

_"… The Ginyu Special Squad!"_

_Redgic was speechless out of exasperation, as Ginyu spoke up again. He pointed to his right._

_"The pose still isn't done yet," he pointed out. "It'll look a lot better once we've got a fifth guy to be on my right. That's where you come in!" He extended a hand outwards. "You're a rare prodigy, Redgic, born with extraordinary potential for power, just like us! We're sure you'll do splendidly as the team's long-sought-after final member!"_

_"No."_

_"Hey hey hey," Recoome was feeling insulted now. "You didn't even think about it!"_

_"I don't need to," Redgic sternly responded once more. "Your whole ordeal is ridiculous. And you all know that I work alone."_

_"Excuse me?" Jheese exclaimed. "Ridiculous?"_

_"I don't think you know what's going on, here!" Even the normally cheerful Ginyu was getting agitated now. "Or whom you're so boldly turning down!"_

_"I know exactly what's going on," Redgic retorted, obviously annoyed himself as well, though maintaining his cool and composed demeanor. "Still sore about losing out to Sauzer, are we? I see you're looking to form a bigger and better team than his to make up for it?"_

_"Why you... !"_

_"Nobody else around aside from Freeza himself and his clan even approach your power, Ginyu," he continued. "So you surround yourself with a multitude of second-rate peons to compensate."_

_"Hey!" Recoome snapped. "Who are you callin' a peon?"_

_"So I'll tell you the same thing I told Sauzer when he made the same proposal to me. I have no interest in petty, meaningless 'teams' which serve no practical purpose other than putting on a show," Redgic lectured. "I do what I do best on my own, and I don't need anyone else around to get in the way, especially not a troupe of glorified clowns." He finally turned back around to face the water again. "Now, leave me be."_

_"Listen, you!" Ginyu reached out and bodily whipped Redgic back around by the shoulder. "That's about enough of your attitude! I come along and offer you an opportunity for greatness, and not only do you refuse, but insult us?" He raised one hand, arching it back into a fist. "You'll pay for that!"_

_Redgic focused his energy but did not yet raise it, preparing himself to fight if need be. All four at once? That sounded like a challenge._

_"Gentlemen."_

_They and the scattered few others in the crowd knew that voice all too well. It was calm, gentlemanly, and almost soothing at the surface, while still carrying a distinct tone of authority and haughty wisdom. But only those who had personally seen this individual in action knew the truth, that the voice was the most sinisterly misleading thing anyone would ever witness in their entire life, and its bearer, by far the most dangerous._

_"Lord Freeza!"_

_There he stood, just inside the large main archway leading into the room. He was all on his own, walking about casually like anyone else at the moment instead of riding his usual egg-shaped hovering chair. His short, reptilian form was deceptively unimposing, with pink segmented skin on his extremities, covered up by a tough white hide in the vital areas and dark purple, translucent flesh on his black-horned head and forelimbs._

_Ginyu was the first to speak, as he hurriedly let go of Redgic and faced the boss with a slight, respectful bow. Everyone else followed suit._

_"Ah, Mister Ginyu," Freeza spoke up again. "Ganging up on poor Redgic, are we?"_

_"Ah, not quite, sir." Ginyu nervously replied. "You see, we approached him to-"_

_"Yes, yes, recruiting for that new task force of yours. I had figured as much." Freeza smiled a bit, as he gingerly addressed his subordinate. "Really, Mister Ginyu. As always, I truly do appreciate your enthusiasm. But please, keep that fiery passion of yours in check, would you? I can't have my best men squabbling among themselves, you know."_

_"Of course," he replied. "My apologies."_

_Freeza began walking past the group, making his way towards the far end of the lounge. He paused as he passed Redgic, temporarily turning partway around to warmly address him._

_"Mister Redgic, I heard about your performance on Planet Fygg. Excellent work," he said. "Rest assured, you have my full support in continuing to do your job as you wish. So long as, I trust, you shall continue to do that job well?"_

_"Yes, Lord Freeza."_

_Freeza casually made his way through the room in his own misleadingly cheerful manner, humming to himself a bit as he glanced around. Once he was definitely clear and gone, his assorted minions once again perked up and addressed each other._

_"Hmph," Ginyu snorted at Redgic derisively. "Fine, then. Don't join if you don't want to. Your loss." He turned around and signaled to the others, starting to walk away and not look back. "Come on, boys! Looks like we're on the hunt again."_

_"Whatever," Butta piped in, shooting a dirty look at Redgic. "You're no fun, anyway."_

_"You're lucky Lord Freeza stopped us from roughing you up!" Recoome likewise put in, unaware of just how severely things would have progressed to the contrary._

_"Y'know, Captain," Jheese said, running up to Ginyu's side. "If Redgic's out, then there's another guy we should totally consider."_

_"Oh, really? Who?"_

_"Bear with me here, but there's this little guy from the South Galaxy named Gurd..."_

_"Gurd?" Ginyu was shocked. "Yeah, I know him. He's a total weakling!"_

_"True, his battle power is pretty low," Jheese explained. "But he's got these downright amazing psychic tricks you gotta see to believe..."_

* * *

The sudden blaring of the alarms was what roused Redgic from sleep. Despite all the noise, he allowed himself to lay still for a long moment, contemplating this newest dream. What in the stars was going on? For decades he had tried to distance himself from his past, occupying and distracting himself however he could in an effort to forget those bleak, helpless times. Why had all these memories come flooding back now? Was this feeling of foreboding for a reason? Was his lifelong gift of intuition trying to tell him something? He felt confused and vacuous, but there was no time to dwell on it now. For once, Redgic was grateful and even glad for there to be an emergency. It would provide an opportune diversion from these unpleasant thoughts.

He shifted over and stood up from the bed in his quarters. The room was relatively spartan and small, as per his request. All those years serving as a low-ranking Freeza Soldier had made him accustomed to it, after all. Even once he'd climbed the ranks into elite status, he preferred being treated as nothing special. Anything else tended to draw too much undesired attention.

Walking over to the opposite side of the room, he casually opened up a closet embedded within the wall and procured his favored long, hooded red cloak. Despite not asking or being told, he already knew exactly what was going on, who was causing the ruckus, and where it was happening. Above all, he knew he'd be needed. He also knew it tended to be chilly down there in the hangar cavern. After slipping the cloak comfortably onto his broad shoulders, he nonchalantly exited the room and began walking down the estate's hallway. There was a constant hustling and bustling of Don Kia's hired troops, most having only just returned from their fruitless mission out in the Imeggan villages only to have to re-scramble now to deal with an intruder. Or at least, attempt to. Speaking of fruitless endeavors...

"Redgic!"

He didn't bother turning around, because he already knew who it was long before they even saw him. Shilla and Ghel, the two topmost-ranking of Don Kia's goons, caught up and began walking with him.

"Good thing we found you!" Ghel remarked as he looked up. "We have an emergency in the hangar! That new group of troublemakers from this afternoon have somehow made their way inside!"

"I know," he coolly replied. "Where do you think I'm heading?"

"Oh no, don't worry. We'll handle this," Shilla informed him. "Don Kia would want you guarding him personally, after all. We won't let them ge-"

"Don't even bother," Redgic interrupted. "You don't stand a chance."

"Well, I know we didn't do too well last time," Ghel meekly protested. "But now we're prepared! There's no way they'll humiliate us a seco-"

"Yes, they will," Redgic cut in again, with even less patience for their stupidity. "They weren't even using a fraction of their true power on you before. Whoever they are, only I can face them in a fight." He turned his head a bit as he walked away, leaving them standing there disheartened. "YOU go to the big baby's office and make yourselves at least APPEAR useful."

* * *

"Jackpot!" Goku exclaimed. "That's three for me, Pan!"

She offered no reaction beyond that of a small smile. "I just hit lucky number seven."

"What?" Goku was astounded. "Man, I must be losing my touch in my old age."

The two Saiyan children zipped about back and forth, using a tiny percentage of their powers yet still moving so quickly that none among the constant swarm of Don Kia's private militia could get a bead on them with their standard-issue laser rifles. As a result, the crowd of troops were in a state of utter panic, totally losing their bearings and becoming distracted from their main objective, the ship. This was fortunate for Trunks, who laid low for the time being while zipping about himself, powering the vessel up in preparation for their imminent escape. He emerged from behind it and addressed his two compatriots.

"The ship's almost ready!" he called out. "Pan, have you got it?"

Pan did a small flip in the air as she dodged a series of beams from a group of angry alien guards. "Yep!" She responded, pointing to the small blue backpack which she now wore. "The Dragon Ball and our new little accomplice are both packed up tight!"

"Gigigigigigiii..." The robot's cries of confused distress could be heard from within the bag.

"Hahaha," Goku cheered himself as he sent a trooper flying. "I've got eight now!"

"What are you two doing?" Trunks asked in passing, taking notice of their little contest.

"We're playin' Pachinko with these guys!" Goku cheerfully exclaimed as he floated around in midair while pointing down off the side of the ledge. "I made a hole in the ground with my Ki, and we're seein' who can drop more of 'em in there!"

"That's eleven for me, Grandpa."

"Huh?" Goku snapped back to attention again as he began freaking out a bit. "Oh geez, don't tell me I'm still losing!"

The discovery of this carefree treatment began to severely agitate their opponents, who began to fire away even more actively, yet still haphazardly, than before. The torrent of ineffective suckage continued and was easily dealt with for not even another minute, when it suddenly ceased altogether.

"Hey, what's goin' on?" Goku complained, as he saw them all start to back away and clear the area. "I'm still behind by five, now! Don't run away!" he complained.

"Maybe they realized it's pointless," Pan wondered as she floated down and landed next to Goku. "You think they're just gonna let us take the ship nicely now?"

"No, that's not it..." Goku wrinkled his brow for a minute, then his gaze darted upwards.

There, standing upon the highest level of the hangar, was a very imposing-looking individual. He stood a full head taller than Trunks, with a very slim but toned build. His underlying black clothes were very plain and unassuming, but over top of it he wore a dark red, hooded cloak. A pair of spikes protruded from its shoulders, and a short chain hung from the end of each sleeve. From below the the back of the cloak jutted a long, sleek tail, which casually coiled back and forth. It was a darker shade of the blue skin covering the rest of him, including the shadowed, stern and angular face which peered out from under the hood.

Pan followed Goku's gaze, noticing the newcomer herself. "Who's that?" she asked, glancing back and forth between him and their prior opponents. "They're all backing off and deferring to him... is this that Redgic guy the old folks warned us about?"

"I don't know," Goku pondered. "But he's good. I never even sensed him come in here."

Up above, the mysterious figure was regarding them with an abnormal level of interest. He held out his right arm, pointing its open palm down the center of the hangar and directly at the group of intruders and their ship. Only Namekian ears could possibly have picked up what he then said.

"Show me your strength."

Suddenly, a quick rush of Ki visibly enveloped the figure's body, and an incredibly large mass of it then erupted from his hand, shooting along at high speed on a beeline for the group. All three Saiyans were shocked at the surprising amount of power behind this abrupt attack.

"What in the... !" Pan exclaimed.

But before she could even finish her thought, Goku was already in the air and rocketing upwards to meet the blast halfway. He made contact with it in the open air, bringing his own power to the surface as he thrust both of his arms out and forward to bodily grasp the entire mass of energy in a bear hug.

"Kyaaaaaah!"

Barely maintaining his grasp for a second, Goku sharply spiked his own Ki and took care of the attack. He pushed his own energy into that of the blast, bringing both his arms together and crossed in one swift movement. The massive glowing projectile disappeared, a shockwave of air and loose Ki bursting outwards. It knocked quite a few of Don Kia's soldiers off their feet and kicked up dust from the cavern's floor and walls.

Goku remained, floating in the middle of the cavern's expanse as a few bolts of displaced leftover energy erratically arced through the air. He calmly righted himself, looked up at the attacker, and smiled.

* * *

For a moment, all Redgic could do was stand there, and while his face revealed nothing more than his usual stoic expression, in reality, he was shocked, stupefied, and impressed all at the same time.

"This child completely neutralized my attack," he murmured to himself. "It had enough power behind it to kill any past intruder ten times over, but he didn't dodge it, redirect it, counter it, or anything. He just... utterly canceled it out. What in the world could..."

But as the child looked up and shot him a sly smile, that flabbergasting feat suddenly became only of secondary importance compared to what Redgic also realized. The messy black hair and piercing dark eyes. The muscular build. That same exact feeling of raw, refined energy.

"Is he... Saiyan?"

Suddenly, the oldest and tallest of the group, the only one among them who didn't look like the other two, called out to his companions.

"It's ready! Let's go!"

The female child immediately rushed to his side, while the young and amazingly powerful boy slowly floated down backwards, not taking his eyes off of Redgic all the while. Just as he landed, the eldest intruder reached up and appeared to activate some sort of control on the underside of their confiscated ship. When he did, the entire craft rumbled and hummed for barely a few seconds before, in a bright flash of light, a booming sound, and burst of smoke, it seemingly disappeared. But in actuality, it had shrunken and been compressed into a smaller item of some sort, which the crafty tallest one snatched out of the air. His fellows were quite impressed.

"Wow!" the young female exclaimed as she grabbed his hand. "I didn't know the whole ship could turn into a Capsule!"

"Huh?" The smallest one turned around in distress. "Really? Do it again, I wasn't looking!"

That was Redgic's chance. He leaned forward, seeming at first to be flopping of the ledge of the upper hangar level, but then pushing himself off of it. With a burst of energy, he rocketed himself forward and down, arcing back his fist for a punch aimed directly at the tiny but powerful fighter. But the child still seemed to see him coming. He grabbed the free hand of the female one with one of his own, and then raised up two fingers of the other to his forehead.

The last thing Redgic saw was the boy flashing another quick, confident smile before he disappeared into thin air. Redgic came to a sudden but controlled landing on the deck where the boy, his friends, and the ship had stood only seconds ago.

Redgic was upset about their escape for only a moment; then he brought himself to relax again. There was no need to rush. He'd watched intently when the female had emerged from the ship carrying the small, orange orb, and he had made the connection to the nearly identical artifact which had recently earned a spot in Don Kia's personal gallery.

There was no doubt that they would come for it. HE would come for it. And Redgic would be waiting there to fight him.

While his conscious mind had long given up hope of this day ever coming, deep down, his heart had been waiting for it all these years. Another few hours, or even days, wouldn't make a difference. Redgic would wait.

He would wait.


	13. Pay The Piper

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED**

Chapter Thirteen – "Pay the Piper"

As much as one might be inclined to describe it to the contrary, Don Kia's main office was not technically a throne room. Sure, it was wide and spacious, easily the largest single room in the entire compound. True, the ceiling arced high above like that of some majestic Gothic cathedral, with a series of carved stone columns reaching up from the floor to touch it. Yes, the floor itself was even gold-plated, with a long, red, silky carpet laid across it, reaching all the way from the entrance to the head honcho's massive desk made of the finest finished wood that the North Galaxy had to offer. And indeed, the walls were adorned with shelves and platforms displaying a wide and various collection of nearly-priceless trinkets and artifacts. But no, it wasn't a throne room. Just an office.

But if one were to hypothetically assume that it was, then currently seated in what would be the throne was the covetous boss himself, Don Kia. He fidgeted around somewhat, seeming distracted and anxious as he shuffled through some papers while going about his usual business, that of raking in profit for other people's work. He paused every so often to ruffle his fingers through a bundle of banknotes, as was his nervous habit. At one point, he turned around and spoke.

"Are you sure they're coming back?"

Leaning against the wall behind him and off to one side was Redgic, silently standing guard with his arms folded. He remained far more calm and patient than his employer, and he responded in his usual cool and surly tone.

"Yes, I'm absolutely certain of it."

"But why?" Don Kia continued to freak out. "What could they possibly need to come here for? The field control center isn't even here, so if they wanted to escape..." He pondered, as the rate at which his fingers flipped through the money increased. "Oh no, they're after me, aren't they? I knew it, somehow I knew all along!" He glanced around, his paranoia flaring as well. "They... they must be someone I stepped on back on Tozak... they look young, maybe I had their parents eliminated for debt, or something..."

"Perhaps," Redgic responded, but as he feigned interest in Don Kia's distress, he casually kept his eye on a particular new item on the shelves. It was a small, orange-colored glass sphere, containing a total of seven of what appeared to be small black stars suspended within its core.

It had certainly attracted attention when, in a streak of fire, it crashed down like an ethereal meteor some distance from the city a few nights ago. The light show caught the attention of everyone in the area, and a scout had managed to locate and retrieve the object soon afterward. The alluring way in which the black stars floated hypnotically inside it only added to its beauty, and it prompted Don Kia to quickly have it added to his personal gallery.

But while Don Kia only saw it as one of dozens of interesting knick-knacks, Redgic knew better. To start, he'd seen an identical, or at least similar, object in the intruders' possession, which was his first clue to its meaning. But it wasn't until he gave it some serious thought that the full scope of the artifacts' significance sunk in, and he realized what they were.

* * *

_ "He's in critical condition, barely holding on! Quickly, increase the fluid's particle density by fifteen percent, and attach nodes for cardiac and cortical stimulation!"_

_ This was just one of many rushed and desperate orders being shouted back and forth within the base's medical lab, and one of the much fewer which Redgic bothered to actually pay any attention to. He had learned at this point how to simultaneously remain alert to all of them while still drowning out the unimportant ones. It wasn't like he was actually in command of this department and its procedures, but it was still good to know the worthwhile bits of what was unfolding around him. Today's particular goings-on, for example, were high and among the most significant things that had happened with the base, possibly the cosmos themselves, in a very long time, possibly ever. _

_ Just roughly two weeks ago, Freeza had sent word of his departure from Planet No. 79, informing those who needed to know of his impromptu change of plans. As it turned out, he had received some "very exciting news" regarding something called Dragon Balls, as a happy side-effect of a particular soldier's characteristic rebellious streak. After politely declining the offers for extra help, Freeza took himself, his two aides, and a small ensemble of troops on hand along to some backwater West Galaxy world named Namek. But it did not go well._

_ Freeza was defeated. Something on that planet had gotten the better of him, wiping out all his present subordinates, even the eventually-summoned Ginyu Special Squad, in the process. After the fact, it had taken considerable time and personal effort on others' accounts to even locate Freeza, barely in time to save his life, and transport him as quickly as possible to this location for medical treatment._

_ Here and now, Redgic stood up on the second level of the lab, where he leaned against a railing and gazed down upon the hurried routine of those below. Freeza, or what remained of him, floated within a top-of-the-line healing chamber, with all sorts of tubes and diodes and IVs attached to him. A large number of the best doctors and technicians the empire had to offer were rushing about back and forth, monitoring the tyrant's vital signs on various advanced pieces of equipment and sorting through assorted tools and supplies for the forthcoming emergency surgery. It wasn't going to be easy, for a number of reasons._

_ It wasn't merely due to the mangled and dismembered state of Freeza's body, missing not just his arm, a chunk of his face, and of course his entire bottom half. It wasn't just because of the incredibly complex and technical nature of the experimental cybernetic components which were to replace them. But despite this pitiful state, what Redgic saw amazed him. Freeza had transformed._

_ "So," Redgic whispered to himself. "This is your true self, Freeza."_

_ Gone were the black bony spikes, cartilage armor, and pink segmented skin typical of the lesser form he remained within almost constantly. They had been shed off completely, revealing the smooth skin, which was white as snow and every bit as cold, and the majestic violet patches which adorned it upon his head, chest, and extremities. This was his final and truest form. It was the one hidden far beneath the others in which the full depths of his power were at his disposal - power so massive that Redgic could only dream of it. What creature or force of nature could possibly have dealt so much damage to a being who could reduce entire worlds to dust with a single hand?_

_ But Redgic's reflective dilemma was relatively unimportant compared to the stress of the surgeons down below. They had a monumental task ahead of them, and as always for those under Freeza's employ, failure was not an option. They were charged with the reconstruction of Freeza's body, so that he might resume his role as the figurehead of the trade empire that ruled over so much of the universe. As well, they had an even more boggling obstacle added to their troubles: A near-absolute lack of knowledge regarding Freeza's physiology. _

_ Even within his first and most suppressed form, he rarely, if ever, was in need of medical attention. His battle power already stood far and above anything else in the known mortal universe, so any damage dealt to him that was more than a mere scrape or bump was practically unheard of. But none save a rare and select few, Redgic included, even knew that Freeza was capable of transforming, much less possessed any sort of information regarding his true form, which lay before the doctors now. Putting him back together would surely be like trying to complete a puzzle with only half the pieces, and without even knowing what the complete picture looked like._

_ Fortunately for them, they had a little help from someone who knew everything there was to know about Freeza: his father. While Freeza was the revered and feared public front man for the family business, the illustrious King Cold was a shadowy and elusive individual who preferred to operate behind the scenes. He was nothing more than a whispered rumor among the majority of the empire and universe's population. Few even knew for a fact that he existed, much less ever saw him, save for his two sons and his direct subordinates, the latter of which Redgic was among as of six years ago._

_ In many ways Cold resembled Freeza in his most common suppressive form, but quite unlike it, he stood easily twice as tall as anyone else in the room, keeping his arms sternly folded as he observed the commotion and listened to the stuttered explanation of one of the doctors. Cold was the one who personally spearheaded the mission to recover Freeza, and like any dutiful parent of a hyper-powerful dictator, he was remaining close at hand to oversee his son's recovery. Redgic, himself, likewise started paying attention._

_ "... to your request, Lord Coola has provided the results of his personnel's research on cybernetic enhancement," the short, bird-like doctor stated. "It will take some time, sire, but we should be able to utilize this technology to adequately restore Lord Freeza..."_

_ "And his power," Cold spoke up in his usual gruff and demanding voice. "What of it?"_

_ "Y-yes, well," the doctor stammered. "Of course, it is impossible for any current scouter technology to measure Lord Freeza's full potential... but our calculated projections put his battle power at well over one hundred million. We can't say for sure until we try, but these modifications would conceivably allow his maximum battle power to approach one hundred and fifty..."_

_ "I see," Cold responded, with a slight smirk. "Proceed. Keep me informed of any changes."_

_ With that, Cold turned around, letting his trademark regal cape flow behind him as he lumbered out of the room. While they still kept up their eager pace, the medical staff was finally able to relax a bit with the exit of his ominous presence. Redgic became focused on Freeza once more and returned to his prior train of thought. Who could have possibly dealt such damage to the most powerful - well, former most powerful - being in the entire known universe itself? What sort of monster could wield such power? What would this mean for Freeza's empire?_

_ At that moment, as though for the specific purpose of answering Redgic's question, Freeza momentarily regained some slight amount of consciousness. He mumbled something which barely carried through the standard speakers within his breathing tube, but it resonated loudly and clearly within Redgic's generous ears._

_ "Curse you... monkey..."_

_ And just like that, Redgic realized that no matter how much Freeza's power increased, it would never be enough. It was over._

* * *

Nine thousand, one hundred. Nine thousand, two hundred. Nine thousand, three hundred...

Had Don Kia actually been counting the multitude of 100-Gamet bills he flipped through rather than just doing so as a nervous twitch, that's what the current tally would have been. But of course, the act was merely done out of anxiety for the sake of its tactile comfort, rather than any desire to actually count his money. He had people to do that for him. He even had some other people to do that for those people.

A moment later, when the theoretical count finally breached ten thousand, the edgy, pink-haired entrepreneur spoke again, once more on the topic of hypothesizing just who these potential intruders were and what they wanted.

"Oh no... what if they're from... what if **he** sent them?" He began rubbing his temple as his fear seemed to escalate sharply. "Did... did we miss a shipment, or something? Was it not enough? Even if you can defeat these people, then he might personally come and... Oh dear, oh dear, I don't even want to think about what he could do to-waaah!"

He practically jumped out of his seat as a small intercom panel in his desk abruptly buzzed at him. After allowing it to repeat itself for a few seconds as his heart rate returned to normal, Don Kia pressed a button which caused a small screen upon the desk to activate and display the face of one of his guards outside. Seeing that the connection was made, the alien goon gave a quick, two-right-handed salute with all three fingers of each, after which Don Kia addressed him somewhat brusquely.

"What do you want?"

"It's," the guard was taken a bit aback. "Just giving another hourly report, sir... Like you ordered?"

"Oh, yes," Don Kia now remembered his own instructions. "Go ahead."

"Not much TO report, actually," he explained. "All is still quiet. Well, it is now. Mostly quiet, anyway. We think one of the natives down and over in the village was having a baby or something, because we heard some loud distant screaming and it kinda freaked us out."

"Fascinating. So, nothing unusual?"

"I dunno, that was pretty unusual, if you ask me." He failed to notice his boss's annoyed expression. "I mean, I'm surprised you didn't hear it from up there. It kind of sounded like a Hydragianese Sea-Banshee. Those things are loud. You ever been to Planet Hydragia before, boss?"

"... No."

"Well, me and my ex-wife, we took our honeymoon there, oh, must have been ten years ago now, and well, we really should have done our research first," he continued to babble. "See, the landscapes on that planet are really beautiful, oh man, absolutely gorgeous. The trees, boss. The trees' roots are like some kinda light-conduits, and they soak it up during the day and then the whole tree glows at night..."

Some sort of muffled shouting could be heard in the background as Don Kia tried, but failed, to get a word in.

"I'm sure that's nice, but I've really got to-"

"Oh, right, yeah, the banshees," the chatty guard got back on track. "See, the ex-wife and I, we decided to go campin' down at a beach, so we could see the trees close-up, you know? But we didn't know..."

He paused for a moment to call out to his comrades without even looking. "Hey come on, guys, keep it down, will ya? I'm talking to the boss here!" He turned back to the screen.

"Yeah, so we didn't know about the banshees, and that was pretty dumb of us 'cuz any old fool who's ever been to Hydragia can tell you about the banshees. But there we are, it's dusk, we're gazin' at the trees and the four moons, and we're just startin' to get in the mood to, heh heh, consummate, if you get what I'm saying, when they showed up. Suckers just floated up outta nowhere from the water, looking like winged jellyfish or something, and they just started screaming! I mean really, you'd think the things were burning to death, or something, 'cause they all sounded li-HUUURKH!"

To the merciful relief of Don Kia, the guard was finally rendered silent. However, it was because something or someone had come up behind him and made significant impact with the back of his head, smashing his face against the video receiver screen in the process. Don Kia's small monitor was now nothing but static, though the audio was still coming through, and within that audio was a brand new set of voices.

"Oops, I think broke it," said a very young voice. "Am I gonna have to pay for that?"

"Grandpa, what are you talking about?" Another, more feminine, but also young voice appeared. "We're about to blow up the whole big door, why would you care about some buttons on the wall?"

"It's jus' that very time I've broken somethin' electric away from home, Chi-Chi always gets mad and says, 'now we're gonna have to pay for that,' and then she doesn't cook me any dinner, so-"

"Don't worry, Goku," a third, older, and more masculine voice finally chimed in. "Your dinner is in no danger tonight. Feel free to break all the gadgets you want."

"Yay!"

With that, the audio intercom was overloaded by the deafening sound of a large explosion, and the feed cut out. Barely a second later, the same sounds and sights of the intruder alarm from yesterday began blaring once again throughout the entire compound.

As all this transpired, Don Kia did nothing more than stare blankly at the little static-filled screen. Now, as shouts of pain, panic, and pandemonium began to join the alarm in echoing throughout the entire estate, he slowly turned to one side to look at Redgic, and the appearance on his face was that of a frightened toddler.

"Redgiiiic..."

"I'm here," Redgic reminded him, a bit more disgusted than usual at his employer's pathetic cowardice. He calmly reminded himself about the payoff soon to come, and he put up with it.

"Right, right... of course you are," Don Kia affirmed, his fears temporarily and partially quelled. "It's the perfect multi-leveled barrier of defense. All the soldiers at their stations throughout the estate, Shilla and Ghel on watch outside the door, and you standing guard right here with me." He smiled nervously. "There's no way they can get to me..."

* * *

"There's no way you're getting to our boss!"

Ghel stood his ground on his stubby little legs, fully believing the words he spoke as he pointed defiantly at the intruders who now stood before him. His partner, the lovely and devious Shilla, stood likewise beside him as they planted themselves in front of the main door to Don Kia's office. There they were, standing "tall" and proud like twin spires of an adamant fortress of impenetrable invincibility and stuff.

The three individuals who stood opposite of them were familiar and expected faces. The two young and short ones, male and female, with dark hair, and the single adult male with light hair. They had spent the last ten minutes steadily making their way through the estate since entering through the front door, surely struggling to proceed as they fought off wave after wave of Don Kia's finest and most illustrious hired soldiers. So now, as Shilla and Ghel had convinced themselves, these foolishly bold meddlers were assuredly worn down and ripe for the plucking. They seemed to be the only ones who thought so.

"Aw," the tiniest one spoke. "You guys again, huh?"

The female one followed. "You do realize we're just going to whoop your butts again, right?"

Shilla folded her arms and snickered haughtily. "Fufufufufu... Somehow, I don't think you'll have as easy a time doing so this... time."

"We've reflected on our last encounter, and we're nothing if not adaptable," Ghel explained. "We realize where we went wrong, and this time, we'll do it right!"

"Brace yourselves," Shilla declared, as she and Ghel took stance to launch themselves. "Because this is as far as you'll go!"

They propelled themselves forward with as much speed and force as they could muster. Rather than try to divide up the foes between them like last time, it seemed that their new and brilliant strategy was to combine their efforts, taking down the enemy one at a time. To this end, they both zeroed in on Goku, the front-most of the group. In return, Goku did nothing but hold up a single hand, palm forward.

* * *

"Oh no, oh no, they're here," Don Kia uttered between his chattering teeth. "I can hear voices right outside..." He turned to look at Redgic behind him. "Do you think Shilla and Ghel can handle them?"

At that moment, he got an answer. From outside there was a loud sound like that of a sudden blast of air. With it, the wide, heavy, intricately-carved doors were smashed open inward, the opposite direction they were designed to, damaging their hinges and forming splinters across them. From amidst the burst of destruction, as though the doorway had violently vomited them, came Shilla and Ghel, flailing and panicking as they flew bodily through the air.

Don Kia ducked and hid in terror behind his massive desk, into which Shilla and Ghel slammed after tumbling head over heels, both in the air and on the ground. They slumped to the floor, dazed, as the perpetrators of their swift and effortless defeat just casually strolled into the room.

"Hey, there it is!"

Completely overlooking (or perhaps purposely ignoring) the man cowering behind the desk, the trio instead rushed enthusiastically over to a portion of the wall to their right, where they zeroed in on a particular item amongst Don Kia's big, shiny collection of assorted artifacts and trinkets. It was the small glass ball which had crashed down on Imegga just several days ago. The shortest one easily snatched it up and held it high as he spoke.

"It's the seven-star ball!" Goku proclaimed happily, then turned to his female companion. "I do believe you owe me a burger, Miss Pan!"

"Yeah, yeah," she pouted, regretting her bet on two stars the day before. She then removed the blue backpack she wore and opened it up. She acquired the Dragon Ball from Goku and stuffed it inside, from where a small, mechanized and panicked voice could be heard.

"Gigigigi! Danger, danger!"

"No kidding, there's danger," the girl snapped back, "because if you so much as lick either of these Dragon Balls, you're going to be scattered into so many pieces that we'd need another whole year to find them!"

"Gigigigigi... Pan, danger. Pan, danger."

For a moment, Don Kia's sense of ownership and greed overrode his cowardice, and he poked his head out from the desk to protest at the intruders' irreverent touching of his stuff. "H-hey! What do you think you're doing?" he chastised them, causing them to finally take notice of his presence. After a moment or two of staring and processing, they spoke up.

"Oh, hey," Goku realized. "So you must be that Don Kia jerk we keep hearin' about."

"Sorry to intrude," Pan feigned an apology while patting the top of her now-closed backpack before slinging it back over her shoulders again. "But I think we need this more than you do."

"Which brings us to our next issue," Trunks said, beginning to walk down the center of the room towards Don Kia's desk, prompting the others to follow. "There're a few more things we need from you..."

Don Kia whipped his head around to where his bodyguard had been standing just a minute before, but he was shocked and dismayed to discover that that particular corner of the room was now very devoid of any such persons. The terrified tyrant could only mumble a threat through his chattering teeth as the trio of interlopers slowly and self-assuredly continued walking towards him.

"S-stay back! I'm warning you!"

"Don't worry, we won't hurt you," Trunks said. "Much. If you're willing to listen." Pan merely cracked her knuckles together a bit while grinning in sadistic anticipation of the ensuing violence.

Suddenly, Don Kia thrust an arm forward and pressed a large red panic button built into his desk right next to the intercom. When he did, something in the floor beneath the three began to hum, and it was swiftly followed by a higher-pitched buzzing from directly above. In an instant, a strange sort of energy field formed between the ceiling and floor in a moderate radius around the heroes, engulfing them within it.

"Ha... hahahaha! How do you like that?" Don Kia was suddenly a lot braver, believing his would-be assailants to now be incapacitated by the power field. "And now that you can't move..." He pressed a few more small buttons on the desk's control panel. "Take this!"

With that, a half-dozen hidden panels on the walls, floor, and ceiling opened up, and from within each and every one of them emerged a deadly-looking gun barrel, all pointed directly at the spot where the Earthling intruders were supposedly trapped. Immediately, they began unleashing a deadly barrage of repeated energy blasts, which showered down upon the group in an array of small and localized explosions. The force of the bombardment tore up the rug and floor upon which they stood and knocked a few of the lighter trinkets off the shelves.

After a good twenty seconds of continuous and merciless battering, the gunfire ceased. Don Kia watched tensely, his heart pounding, as the dust and smoke began to clear. His stomach twisted into knots as he witnessed all three intruders still standing within the entrapment field and appearing completely unharmed.

"What was that s'posed to be?" the smallest one asked. All three of them simply walked out from the field like it wasn't even there and continued strolling in Don Kia's direction. Then, suddenly, the smallest stopped, and the others immediately after him, just before they heard a deep and familiar voice.

"Fool."

All eyes were then directed to the opposite side of the room, where Redgic had now reappeared. He stood there, calm and tall in front of the broken doorway, blocking the primary escape route. His eyes were partially hidden in shadow beneath the hood of his deep red cloak, but the rest of his face bore a stern expression as he spoke.

"These people aren't weak and helpless like the others before," he explained. "It will take far more than that to deal any damage to them."

"Redgic! Thank the great banker!" Don Kia was elated to see his hired muscle make a timely reappearance. "Great job, you've got them cornered! Now let them have it!"

"WHAT," Redgic snapped at him, "have I told you about giving me orders?"

"Eek!" Don Kia was taken aback slightly. He then folded his hands together and rephrased his request more meekly. "Er, p-please, Mister Redgic, would you deal with them?"

"I will," he responded, staring them all down. Goku, most noticeably, glared back with a combined expression of intrigue and animosity. "But this time, I've got my own motives." He then addressed the intruders. "I've no desire to waste time, though. I'll only fight the strongest one of you, right now."

Without warning, Trunks was the first to leap into action. "Sorry, but you don't get to decide," he proclaimed. He propelled himself forward before anyone could stop him and charged through the air straight towards Redgic. "I'll take care of you!"

Goku held out a hand in protest.

"Trunks, stop!"

Trunks did indeed stop, but not by himself. Redgic did that for him, suddenly lurching forward and dealing one powerful under-punch square into Trunks's torso, too swiftly for the brash demi-Saiyan to react.

"Not you."

Trunks was sent hurtling through the air, crashing into the far wall behind Don Kia's desk, the proprietor of which ducking underneath it for cover again. He bounced off the wall and came tumbling down to the floor, rolling over once or twice before stopping, where he lay stomach-down in pain.

"Trunks!" Pan rushed over to him and knelt down as he started to prop himself up on one arm. "What in the world was that...?

"Ouch..." Trunks wheezed, woozy and stunned from the blow. "This... this guy can really handle himself... He's way stronger than I thought..."

Not needing to look back to know that Trunks was okay, Goku remained standing, firmly facing down Redgic. He glared for a moment or two, sizing him up. Then, he smiled slightly and spoke.

"I'm Son Goku," he said. "So you're Redgic, huh?"

"That's right," Redgic replied. "I've felt your power for quite some time."

He folded back his hood, finally revealing his face to his opponent for the first time. It was muscular and lean, with large, dome-like ears and his grayish-blue skin showing signs of a lifetime's worth of stress and battle. His eyes seemed as though they'd normally be lifeless and cynical, but they were now almost glimmering with a new-found spark of anticipation and intensity. He returned Goku's slight smile.

"I'll warn you right now, I won't hold back," he said. "Not even though my opponent is a child."

Don Kia poked his head back out from under the desk. "Wait," he muttered. "You mean the kid is the strongest of the bunch? How in the world...?"

"I ain't a child," Goku protested. "I'm sixty... Uh, wait, no... fifty an'..." He paused for a moment and began counting on his fingers as if trying to make the calculations in his head. "Let's see, a year dead, then... another in the room, an' then seven..."

But when he felt Redgic's power begin to waver and fluctuate, Goku realized it didn't matter. It was go time. He stopped, then began to likewise build up his own Ki, in preparation to let it loose - which they both then did.

Redgic kick-started the battle by simply thrusting out one palm, unleashing an invisible but powerful kiai. Goku reacted quickly, following with one of his own, which was slightly faster. The two unseen waves of Ki met and collided halfway between their originators, causing the air to ripple and create a large, shattered crater in the stone floor.

Before the rubble had even fallen back down, the two combatants had taken to the air along with them. They each jumped and arced over the clashing point of their attacks, in order to themselves collide above it. Redgic threw a single leading punch, which Goku handily brought up a forearm to block. While pushing himself further upwards towards Redgic, he brought up his other arm for a swinging uppercut. Redgic propelled his body the same direction in order to dodge it, then reached down and swiftly grabbed Goku's wrist. Using Goku's own momentum against him, Redgic twirled him completely around once before hurling him straight upwards.

Goku crashed bodily through the ceiling out into the open night air, wincing a bit as he paid the price for underestimating Redgic's speed and strength. He recovered in time, however, to see what came next. A rapid volley of Ki blasts burst through the roof after him, widening the small hole he'd made several times over and essentially morphing Don Kia's office into an impromptu outdoor deck. Of course, the crybaby was none too happy about this.

"Aaaah!" He cried. "My mansion!"

His whining went unheeded, however, as the two beings responsible were far more focused on each other. Flying further up into the air to give himself more prep time, Goku focused his power. With a yell, he stretched out his arms as the array of Ki blasts zeroed in on him.

"Hyaaaa!"

A wide shockwave of Ki caused the air to ripple as it erupted from him in all directions. It met Redgic's blasts head on, and each one was repulsed and burst out of sight like fireworks as they were countered. Goku noticed the dark red blur close in on him just in time to turn partway around, reach out to his side with his left hand, and catch the punch which Redgic delivered, having followed close behind his Ki attack and gotten himself in close quarters again.

Redgic wasted no time and responded to the block by throwing out a jab with his right hand towards Goku's ribs. Goku was caught wide open for it by his block and recoiled, wincing in pain as he let go of Redgic's fist and floated backwards a bit. He had no allowance to nurse the impact, as Redgic kept the pressure on with a quick flurry of punches. Goku kicked up his own speed a notch and easily dodged them all, bobbing back and forth so quickly that his torso would seem like a formless blur to anyone with untrained eyes.

Redgic switched things up and tumbled in the air to situate himself upside-down and bring a powerful sweeping kick down towards Goku's head. Goku reacted by swerving to one side and catching Redgic's leg with both hands. With a quick yell, he spun around and heaved Redgic off and away.

As Redgic went careening into the distance, he turned himself around to face Goku and fired off a large ball of Ki in his direction. Goku braced himself, readying one arm to smack it away. But suddenly, Redgic triggered its detonation early, and it exploded right in front of Goku, who brought his forearms up to protect his face from the explosion.

It was more or less just a light show, however, meant as a distraction while Redgic rocketed after it to close the distance again. Goku sensed him do so, but the speed at which Redgic moved was genuinely surprising. Redgic took Goku's back, and by the time Goku turned around it was too late. Redgic landed a powerful kick square into Goku's gut, the force of which sent him flying away.

Goku flinched for a moment at first, then looked down to see where his spontaneous trajectory was taking him: Straight towards the nearby Imeggan village. Whether Redgic had intended it or not, Goku was now a living missile aimed directly at the small and already barely habitable homes of the natives. He had to think and act quickly before he made impact, so he did what any normal person would do whenever he happened to find himself hurtling through the sky towards a neighborhood at a few hundred miles per hour. He teleported.

In the blink of an eye, he was suddenly back in the airborne battlefield right next to Redgic. But while his position had changed, his momentum had not. He continued moving and surprised Redgic, who was this time the one to turn around too late, with a thundering driving kick to the chest.

Redgic toppled through the air for a moment before halting himself with a burst of Ki. As he held his chest to soothe the pain, he floated idly, keeping an eye on his opponent. Goku did the same, and the two simply stared at each other.

After a few seconds, Redgic did something odd. Reaching up to the insides of his cloak, he fiddled around with something at the point where there was a visible horizontal division about halfway up his torso. His target was apparently some sort of fastening, as after a moment, the entire bottom half of his cloak simply fell away. Rather than floating idly to the ground as one might expect it to, it plummeted at a surprising velocity before crashing down and creating yet another hole in the roof of Don Kia's office.

All the while, Redgic had not taken his eyes off of Goku, and vice-versa. Now that he was uninhibited by his training weights, the "warm up" portion was over, and the battle would begin in earnest.

Both combatants smiled again.

* * *

Despite the warm-looking red glow cast over the landscape by her moons, Imegga's nights were typically quite cool. Enjoying the brisk air while gazing up at the moons was one of the few and most relaxing methods of recreation enjoyed by the native Imeggans. For Futopa, it had become a somewhat nightly ritual. Tonight, like most other nights, he would simply sit cross-legged on the roof of his and Haquai's modest hut, tinkering on some random small gadget or another from his collection.

In the past, the glow of the moons was typically more than enough for Futopa to work by. But in recent years, his aging eyes were not quite up to the task anymore. Nowadays he required a small electric lantern set beside him, bright enough to provide a modicum of extra light, but dim enough not to drown out his view of the twinkling stars. Though, in a few more years, even that might not have been enough.

For now, however, it sufficed, and all was quiet in the immediate area save for the ever-so-subtle clinking sounds of Futopa working away with his tools. So it was no surprise to him when, despite his ears also starting to act their age, he clearly heard the tender footsteps of his wife, Haquai, steadily proceed up the small structure which one could barely call a staircase along the side of their home. She carefully scratched her way up over the last little bump to take her place on the roof and sit beside him. Futopa addressed her warmly.

"Ah, hello dear," he greeted her. "Couldn't sleep?"

"Afraid not," she muttered in reply, stifling a yawn. "How could anyone?"

While it was true that Futopa's tinkering was the only noise in "the immediate area," it certainly wasn't the most prominent sound in any other sense. Not just Futopa and Haquai, but the entire neighborhood was getting little to no sleep, because for the second night in a row, the distant, elevated estate of Don Kia was in an uproar, and the chaos echoed across the cliff-laden landscape to resound within the normally peaceful and quiet village. The sounds of blaring alarms, panicked shouting, and even the occasional explosion reverberated through the air and reached the ears of all the Imeggans, and they were left with little choice but to somberly observe it. To them, it had become a sad but almost regular occurrence at this point.

"I suppose they must have managed to bail out last night after all," Futopa gathered. "Though, it's not many who get a chance to make a second attempt, much less actually take it."

"But you know," Haquai said, "if it'd be anybody, it'd be those three." She smiled somewhat woefully. "There was something special about them. They seemed to radiate hope, but not the same false hope from everyone who'd come before them. It was real. You got the feeling that just maybe, these young'ns were different..." She shook her head in disappointment. "Ah, but maybe it's just me, getting mellow and funny in my old age..."

"I'd have to agree with you on that one, dear," Futopa said. His attention then quickly returned to what was happening off in the distance - or rather, what was no longer happening. The pandemonium had abruptly subsided, and everyone in the village knew from experience what that meant. The latest short-lived rebellion against Don Kia had been squelched. For the next few minutes the elderly couple simply sat in hushed reverence, soaking up the silence and reflecting on its meaning.

"It seems like it's all over," Futopa sighed. "Ah, well, it'll sure be a long while until that rascal gets so shaken up again..."

He was immediately proven wrong, as at that very instant, the sky lit up with a bright flash as though lightning had struck out of nowhere. Futopa and Haquai both jumped at it, and as their old hearts raced, the light was immediately followed by a thunderous boom.

"What was that?" Haquai exclaimed, a bit shaken. "Lightning? It's not the stormy season yet!"

"No," Futopa realized. "It came from over there!" He pointed off into the distance, where the activity at the estate had not only unexpectedly resumed, but accelerated to a major degree. The silence had been broken by a sudden explosion which very firmly decided that its presence need be known by everyone within quite a few miles of it. A brilliant series of red flashing lights had erupted out from the top of the chunky-looking estate and exploded at a single point in the sky above it.

"What in blazes was that?" Futopa was confused. "Is... don't tell me it wasn't really over?" He stared and blinked. "Are they actually fighting Redgic, now?"

The answer was a resounding 'yes' when almost immediately thereafter, the noise increased. A series of booms echoed through the air, almost as though a multitude of invisible explosions were ripping apart the sky. Though no light show accompanied it this time, it was certainly impressive enough without it.

While the blaring alarms of an incursion at the estate were a fairly regular thing for the Imeggans at this point, this latest event was not. Any scuffles which bold newcomers ever had with Redgic were unanimously short. So, for such a massive spectacle to be unfolding now was completely unheard of. Lights flickered on in the numerous, cramped households around Futopa and Haquai, as inhabitants of all ages were awoken by the unexpected hubbub and began emerging out into the little rocky pathways between their homes to see what was going on.

There arose a short-lived, low chattering from the crowds, as confused Imeggan families tried to make sense of what they were hearing. They were all simultaneously silenced when another spectacular surge of light burst into view up in the sky above Don Kia's estate, bathing it and the entire surrounding landscape in a bright white flash that easily outshone the dim red light of the two moons.

Not even a second after the light and its accompanying boom resided, they heard the sound of another massive impact. This was immediately followed with something new; a rising sound like the rush of moving air, as though some object had been knocked away at amazing speeds in their direction. A few of the sharper-eyed Imeggans thought for a moment that they could see something in the sky, illuminated by the glow of the moons, and racing right towards the village.

Then it vanished. Almost as soon as it did, another similar sound of impact was heard back near the estate. Then after that, everything was quiet again. At least, it was for a short moment. The Imeggans were all hushed and awestruck at first, but then the chatter started up again as everyone rattled their brains and continued to wonder what was going on. Futopa and Haquai remained somewhat less talkative for a while.

"Astounding," Futopa gawked. "Could it be... those youngsters are actually a match for that terrifying monster of a man?" He continued staring in the direction of the estate, straining his old eyes and ears to pick up anything further. After a moment, he noticed that Haquai was somehow distracted, and spoke to her. "Dear," he said, "is something the matter?"

"Can you feel that?" Haquai asked him quietly.

"Feel what?" Futopa asked in return. "Right now, I can't feel much but my heart pounding."

"There's..." she paused again, "… a change in the air."

As they and everyone else continued obsessing over the currently subdued hullabaloo, nobody thought to look in the opposite direction. Had anyone given a cursory glance towards the other horizon, they might have noticed the stars vanishing from sight as they were ever so steadily covered up.

* * *

Goku raised up an arm to block the next swinging kick from Redgic, then drifted to his left to avoid the following punch. He threw a jab of his own towards the side of Redgic's head, but Redgic dodged it by tilting his torso backwards, then managed to twist himself around and thrust out a driving kick despite the awkward posture. Goku brought both his hands down to his midsection in time to block it, but the force still pushed him back a bit.

At the same time as his kick, Redgic reached up, or down as it were at the time, with both his hands and pulled off the two odd spikes protruding from the shoulders of his upper cloak. They instantly grew back on his shoulders to replace themselves while, as almost by magic, the ones in his hands glowed a bright green as he poured his Ki into them, causing them to morph into a pair of slender and formidable-looking swords. As they formed, he righted himself and rushed Goku again, following up his kick with a wide horizontal slash from the sword in his right hand. Goku arced himself upwards as if doing a pole-vault to dodge it, then carried himself back down to let the left sword pass by him immediately after.

Redgic's right side turned back around, and he took advantage of Goku's vulnerable position by thrusting the sword forward in a quick stab. Goku zipped to one side to avoid it, as well as the left-handed stab a split second after it. Redgic then initiated a lighting-fast volley of stabs with both hands, all of which Goku deftly dodged back and forth with relative ease.

Finally, Redgic threw out one final right-handed thrust more powerful than the ones preceding it. Goku needed to react more quickly than before to avoid it, shifting himself completely over to Redgic's left. This left him wide open for Redgic to swing his left sword down from over his head in a powerful slash. Goku seemingly wasn't able to dodge this one, so instead he put up his right hand... and caught the blade, right between his thumb and fingers. Redgic didn't waste any time and brought down the right-hand sword in the exact same fashion, and Goku likewise caught it just the same.

For a moment the two struggled against each other. Redgic pressed down against Goku with all his might, while Goku resisted and kept the swords clasped in place. Then, with a burst of effort, Goku heaved upwards and out, breaking each of the swords in half. Unfortunately, the exaggerated motion of this feat left him wide open, and he was punished for this with the second powerful kick to the gut that night.

Goku was sent somersaulting through the air from the impact for only a few seconds until Redgic appeared again below him. He had abandoned his broken swords, choosing instead to continue the punishment hand-to-hand with a strong uppercut, which caught the unfortunately positioned Goku square in the jaw and set him hurtling back upwards. His trajectory brought him right past a tall communications antenna reaching high up into the air from the roof of Don Kia's estate. He grabbed hold of it as he flew past and swung around it once or twice to cancel his momentum, as well as to get clear of a flying follow-up kick from Redgic below.

Goku heaved himself up a short distance and came to rest, standing on top of the antenna. Redgic did the same on an identical one adjacent to it, and the two combatants glared at each other once again, each with their own sense of vigorous curiosity.

"Wow," Goku said, giving a sly grin. "You are really strong. I'm getting excited."

"No," Redgic responded sternly. "This isn't enough."

"Huh?" Goku said. "Whatcha talkin' about? You're doin' really good he-"

"Don't patronize me! I can tell you're restraining yourself!" Redgic snapped, visibly annoyed. "I can feel much, much more power within you, and if you were using it, then I wouldn't have such an easy edge on you like this!" Goku took a more solemn expression as Redgic continued to chastise him. "I told you I wasn't going to hold anything back! Now, as a fellow warrior, grant me the same courtesy!"

"... I can't," Goku responded. "You'll die."

"Then so be it," Redgic was firm. "I've spent my entire life fighting people weaker than me. In battle, I honestly don't care whether I win or lose. But I can't stand to be the victor unless I know my opponent was truly giving his all." He raised a hand and pointed at Goku. "I know full well the type of opponent I'm up against in you. The feel of your power is unmistakable. Now, Saiyan," he commanded, making sure to put emphasis on that label, "show me what you can really do."

Goku simply continued to stare for some time, pondering the situation before he spoke again.

"... Alright."

With that, he raised his arms up to his waist level and clenched his fists. He began to focus his Ki, and his hair and clothing started to flap in the wind as the air around him was rippled and displaced by his building power. Then at long last, with one decisive burst of concentration, he transformed. His hair was colored a bright yellow and stood on end, and a flame-like golden aura flickered around him for a moment, before dissipating and fading away, willfully allowed to decrease to some extent after the initial surge of energy from the transformation. The shock wave of Ki had destroyed the upper half of the antenna upon which Goku stood, leaving him floating on nothing.

Goku had become a Super Saiyan, and now the fight would truly take off.

* * *

"... And where do you think you're going?"

"Eek!"

Don Kia was abruptly picked up by the collar of his fancy jacket and pulled backwards onto his rear end. Pan easily thus detained him, while Trunks had regained his composure after the crushing blow from Redgic and now stood by the desk. All three present parties were fixated on the fight unfolding in the sky above them.

"Wow, this Redgic guy really is strong!" Pan exclaimed, stupefied. "It looks like Grandpa is actually having trouble with him!"

"Grandpa... ?" Don Kia was confused for a moment before focusing on the important part, managing to muster up some courage in the process. "T-that's right!" He declared. "You're just like all the others! Of course you don't stand a chance against my wonderful Redgic!"

"Don't worry, Pan," Trunks reassured her. "Goku's hardly even trying right now."

"Really?" Pan was next to be surprised. "Wow, I didn't even realize it... they're both so much stronger than me."

"It's not the first time he's held back for the sake of enjoying a fight," Trunks noted. "Heck, that particular habit of his has actually caused a lot of problems on more than one occasion."

Having regained consciousness and overhead this, two particular individuals finally realized how outclassed they were and began slowly crawling away behind the others' backs. Only Don Kia took notice.

"Hey, Shilla! Ghel!" He cried. "What in the world are you doing?"

When Pan and Trunks likewise detected them and turned around, the two would-be deserters froze in their tracks and stuttered.

"Uh, we have to, um..." Ghel said.

"Go... Go fix your breakfast!" Shilla added.

"You liars!" Don Kia shrieked at them as they stumbled to their feet and darted out the doors at full speed. Trunks smiled, but Pan wasn't so amused.

"Hey," she said. "Shouldn't we go after them?"

"No, let them leave," Trunks said. "I don't think they're going to cause any more trouble fo-"

Suddenly, his and Pan's attention was recaptured by the powers they felt at work in the sky above them, or rather, one of the powers. Even the little robot within Pan's backpack seemed to take notice and decided to alert everyone of the obvious.

"Gigigigigi! Warning, energy spike detected! Energy spike detected!"

"Whoa, is he actually-" Trunks was cut off when a bright flash of light burst forth from Goku's body. When he was once again visible a second later, Trunks' suspicion was confirmed. Goku had transformed into a Super Saiyan, further cementing his superiority in the fight.

"Grandpa transformed?" Pan seemed shocked, as even she'd seen this often enough to know of the overwhelming amount of power it granted. "But why?"

"I don't know," Trunks said, equally puzzled, then tenderly rubbed the point of impact from his swift one-hit defeat a few minutes before. "I would actually **need** Super Saiyan to beat this guy, but Goku sure as hell doesn't." He looked back up. "But he's still not putting out anything near his full power..."

* * *

"I really am impressed, you know," said Goku, smiling a little bit. "Not only are you really strong, but you've got a lotta skill, being able to tell I was holding back." His expression once again took a determined and serious form. "Now, let's start the second round!"

He rushed forward towards Redgic, who also pushed off from his spot on the remaining antenna and darted backwards. His efforts to stay out of Goku's range were for naught, however, as Goku suddenly vanished and appeared behind him.

Goku spun himself backwards and landed a powerful swinging kick to Redgic's chest, and this one single blow easily stopped him dead in his tracks and knocked the breath out of him. Goku immediately kept it up with a quick right hook to the head, afterwards using both of their resulting spinning to land a reversed roundhouse kick to Redgic's back with his left foot. He kept up as Redgic was rendered helpless, throwing and landing a quick flurry of blows all over.

Goku slowed down for a moment, perhaps on purpose, which allowed Redgic a split-second opportunity to act. He took it and violently thrust one hand forward, unleashing a large and powerful shockwave of Ki. Goku hardly even felt it, but its primary and successful purpose was, in fact, for Redgic to knock himself back and create some distance between them.

As Goku resumed his pursuit, Redgic once again reached up to his shoulder with his free hand and removed one of the regrown spikes on his time, however, instead of a sword, the spike glowed and grew into a large spear, with a spike on one end and a spherical weight on the other. Redgic grasped his new weapon tightly with both hands before spinning it and sending the ball-weighted end towards Goku.

But, Goku twisted in the air, cleanly and easily dodging the blow as Redgic swapped his grip on the spear, using the momentum of the swing to then jab the pointed end at Goku. This was equally useless, as Goku actually laid down a palm and vaulted over the spear, thrusting himself forward to kick Redgic in the head. Redgic was pushed back again, managing to bring the spear back up and across the front of his body as a guard against Goku, who was once more closing in on him.

Like it wasn't even there, Goku struck right through the spear, snapping it in two and landing a powerful punch to Redgic's chest. Redgic was stunned as he felt a rib crack and a searing pain shoot through his entire torso. He winced, dropping the broken pieces of his spear and grasping the now quickly-bruising spot on his side. This was incredible. Had he really bitten off far more here than he could chew?

Shaking off his doubts as quickly as they formed, Redgic focused himself again. He barely moved himself back in time to avoid another undoubtedly painful punch, whipping his arms in a short jerking motion to grab the two pointed weights which each hung from the ends of his jacket's sleeves. Like with the shoulder spikes from before, they changed shape as he poured his energy into them, growing and lengthening to become like a pair of weighted daggers. Grasping them tightly, he brought them forcefully down towards Goku's head with all his might.

To his further dismay, Goku quickly brought up both arms and swatted them away like nothing. He then immediately turned his motion into a back-flip, kicking Redgic in the chin. Redgic was once again helpless as this was followed by another flurry of quick punches, and finally, while Redgic was dazed, Goku twirled around in the air and landed a kick from above.

Redgic was sent plummeting downwards through the air, barely regaining his senses in time to make a rough landing with all fours on the roof of Don Kia's mansion. He reached up one hand to wipe the trickling blood from his nose, then adamantly ignored his body's protest as he picked himself back onto his feet and looked up. Goku hadn't moved from his prior position far above. He floated in place in the exact same spot from where he'd just kicked Redgic a moment ago, casting a stoic and patient glare down at his opponent. Redgic knew exactly what it meant. It was his move, and one way or another it would be his final one. So, he would make it count.

Redgic took a slightly crouched, bracing stance, and the ground around him began to shake as he started charging power for his final attack. He began to focus his energy into his hands, visibly forming immensely-focused formations of it in each. He grunted and strained himself to put everything he had into it, condensing the energy until it was shining so intensely that it seemed he held a pair of miniature suns in his palms.

He then brought both hands out in front of him, and rather than unleashing the volatile batches of energy, he brought them in to meet. Pushing them into one another, he forcibly churned and mixed them together into one, brand-new, and even more violently flaring mass. He held this new chaotic, sparking attack between his hands, now stretched up above his head. Small bolts of lightning crackled in the air around him as he barely held the massive amount of Ki at bay.

Through this Ki-combination technique, the new attack he'd built up had far more power within it than Redgic could normally generate, enough that if he were to somehow hit himself with it, it would certainly kill him. It was enough, hopefully, to affect his seemingly invulnerable opponent. If this last-ditch attack was just as useless against Goku as everything else up to this point, then that would only cement Redgic's inferiority. Yet, if it managed to succeed, then it would win Redgic the biggest fight of his life. Either way, it would spell the end of the battle.

As Redgic finished forming the attack and prepared to launch it upwards, he noticed what felt like a small, cool raindrop land on his face.

* * *

_Redgic felt a warm drop of his own blood splash onto the side of his face, and after heaving himself up on one arm, he reached up to wipe it away before shakily standing again. Still sneering with rage, he turned back around to face the object of his hatred once more._

_ He had learned a lot in the last few days. He'd learned what his devastated former home world looked like from space. He'd learned all about the veritable empire of the one named Freeza, and what it had meant for that world. But most importantly, he'd learned the true identities of the ones who had heralded that fate and laid waste to his entire people and culture. They were called Saiyans, a wicked and barbaric race of warriors, who were used as willing foot soldiers by these people who "cleaned" and sold entire planets like a cheap commodity._

_ As their entire race played such a large role, Redgic figured he'd be seeing more Saiyans before long. But he'd never expected to see this particular one so soon. It was the leader of the pack which destroyed Redgic's people's civilization overnight, with whom Redgic had come face-to-face after the fact. Evidently, they'd all come to the same planet to where Redgic was hauled off. While being "escorted" through the corridors of this massive and ominous military base, Redgic had sighted him: his torso armor off, relaxing at one side of a wide hallway, and easily identified by his wild hair and the X-shaped scar on his left cheek. _

_Redgic had darted out from the reach of the surprised guard accompanying him and charged rashly at the Saiyan, dead-set on beating him down.__ It didn't go well, and a few seconds later, Redgic was on the floor bleeding from his mouth while the Saiyan stood tall and proud, looking down on him with a contemplative expression. After a few more seconds, he recognized his would-be assailant and cracked a cocky smile._

_ "Oh hey, kid, we meet again," he said almost casually. "Looks like Freeza was pleased with our little gift to him. Did you try punching him the second you met him, too?"_

_ "Bardock!" Redgic's assigned guard, a lizard-faced individual dressed in a special model of armor to accommodate the small, second set of arms growing out from his stomach, ran forward and grabbed the still somewhat-stunned Redgic by the collar of his loose and ragged shirt. "I'm sorry, this kid's already too strong for me to handle..."_

_ "Forget about it," Bardock dismissed it as he turned around and began to leave._

_ "Wait!"_

_ He turned his head back to look at young Redgic, whose face was a confused mixture of anger, agony, and sadness. He waited patiently for a moment until Redgic managed to speak again._

_ "Why..." he said, "why did you only spare me? Why didn't you kill me like everyone else?"_

_ "Easy," Bardock replied. "Because I wanted to." He turned around completely and walked a few paces back over to Redgic. "Listen, kid. I admit it, I like my job. Freeza's probably the biggest scumbag the universe has ever seen, but he gives us a priceless opportunity to fight and grow in ways we never imagined before." He looked down at Redgic and cracked another smile. "I just decided to try giving you that same chance."_

_ Redgic was even more confused now. "What? Why?"_

_ "Because you were worth it," Bardock continued to explain. "Look, your planet was our latest assignment, and frankly, it was a boring one. Your race as a whole was pretty weak. But not you. You're something special." He pointed at him. "It'd be a waste to just kill someone with your kind of power. I'm not a nice guy, but I can't help but admire potential when I see it. Seeking out challenges. Always improving and testing yourself. That's what being a Saiyan... no, what being __**alive**__ is all about."_

_ Redgic merely stood there, trying to process what he'd just been told, as Bardock spoke to him one last time. "If you hate me so much, good. Use that to get stronger and then fight me again someday." He turned around again, raising a hand to wave as he began walking away down the corridor. "Later, kid."_

* * *

Goku was momentarily distracted from the fight when he felt what seemed like a small, cool raindrop on his face. Wiping it off and glancing from side-to-side for a moment, he couldn't see much of anything, though he did notice that the moons' dim red glow over the area had lessened significantly since he and Redgic had begun their battle.

He reclaimed his focus, however, when he sensed the Ki from Redgic spike sharply, and he looked back down at his opponent. The two attacks Redgic had been charging up in each hand had evidently just been merged into one. The attack took on a deep red color, and Goku could feel the unique way in which they were being churned and combined.

"Whoa," he muttered to himself, definitely intrigued. "That's pretty interesting..."

His fascination was suddenly cut short when when the amount of Ki he felt suddenly spiked wildly, becoming several times more potent than it was already. That was when Redgic threw the attack, shoving it forward with one hand as though he were cutting the attack loose to do its job without him. A gigantic red fireball shrieked through the sky as it rocketed up towards Goku with an alarming amount of speed and force.

"Oh, shoot!" Goku snapped into action, realizing he couldn't just brush this attack off as easily as everything else thus far. He cupped his hands together, pulling them back and over to his left side, preparing his oldest and most trustworthy technique for a counter-attack.

"Ka-me-ha-me..."

His golden Super Saiyan aura burst out into view again as Goku momentarily raised his own power for the attack, and he thrust his hands forward to release the quickly-gathered energy.

"Haaaa!"

From his hands erupted a fast and powerful stream of blue Ki, seemingly flowing like an airborne river rapids through the sky as it sped down to meet Redgic's attack. The two powerful bursts of energy screamed towards each other, lined up for a head-on collision like two bullet trains coming from opposite directions on the same track. After only a few seconds of flight for each one, they made contact.

At the same instant, as they detonated each other and the resulting explosion began to expand, nature decided to shake things up even further. A bolt of lightning burst into short-lived view off in the distance.

* * *

The last thing Redgic remembered seeing was a gigantic, flashing mass of light. First it was a volatile mixture of the deep red energy of his own attack and the bright blue-white of Goku's against it, then it became entirely blue-white as Goku's attack decisively came out on top in the clash.

Evidently, the force of the explosion had all but wrecked the entire top layer of Don Kia's estate, as when Redgic regained his senses, he found himself lying in a pile of rubble from what used to be the roof and part of the floor previously exposed at the start of the fight. Don Kia was safe (as if Redgic even cared anymore) in the clutch of Goku's two companions, on the other side of what was left of the tyrant's once majestic personal chamber.

Redgic struggled to heave himself up onto his elbows, wincing as his wounded and worn-out body protested even the slightest movement. His only relief for the moment came from the cool rain which began to gently drizzle down through the non-existent roof. Though he was thankful for it, Redgic was convinced that his respite from the agony of battle would be short-lived, as he saw Goku approaching for a landing.

Goku flickered and shimmered at one point while he hovered in from above, his hair returning to its normal shape and color as he canceled his miraculous transformation. He made a calm and easy landing on the floor between Redgic and the others, looking over at him. Redgic looked him back, square in the eyes, and spoke.

"Finish me."

Goku was taken a bit aback by this sudden demand, his eyes widening briefly before he responded. "Why?"

"What do you mean, 'why?' Because you're the victor. You've made your superiority clear, haven't you? So follow through and kill me!"

Goku didn't even need a moment to ponder this proposal before replying.

"No."

"Why not?" Redgic was angry now. "I've spent my entire life killing people! I deserve it!" He pushed himself up to his feet. "Just let me go out in battle against a worthy enemy! That's the way it should be! The only way it CAN be! After all I've done, why in the stars would you let me live?"

"Because," Goku calmly responded, "I want to."

This time, it was Redgic's turn to be taken aback. He stared in shock as his mind raced back to the last time he heard that answer, nearly sixty years ago now. Now, just like then, he could only ask for the reason in a stupefied daze.

"What?" He asked. "Why?"

"Well, to be totally honest," Goku smiled, as he delivered his answer. "It'd be a waste to kill someone with your kind o' power." Redgic remained staring, his mouth slightly agape in surprise, as Goku continued. "Y'know, we're barely off our own planet right now, but here I've already met someone so amazingly strong!" He chuckled a bit. "If there's more powerful guys like you out there, then this trip is gonna be even more fun than I thought!"

With that, Redgic started laughing.

It was joyous and heartfelt laughter, and he couldn't even remember the last time he'd let loose in such a way. Despite all his lingering physical pain, and despite the shame of his defeat, he felt more refreshed and rejuvenated than he'd ever had before. He straightened up his posture as best he could, somewhat able to ignore the aching pain of his old and battered bones, and smiled warmly at Goku again.

In everything about him, he vividly pictured that one other Saiyan from all those years ago, his words ringing true again now more than ever. One Saiyan had changed his life on that day. Now, it felt like he'd come full-circle, and his life had once more begun anew. Redgic wondered if the old Saiyan had somehow known this would happen one day.

"You are," he declared, "something particularly amazing, you know that?"

Goku only chuckled innocently in response.

Suddenly, at the first sign of Redgic's improved condition, Don Kia managed to dart away from the other two intruders and rushed over to Redgic's side. He cowered behind him, looking up and smiling nervously as he chattered away and feigned his own relief.

"G-good, Redgic! I knew a little something like that wouldn't be able to keep you down!" He blabbered. "And I can't forgive these... these punks, for what they've done to my beautiful mansion! Now please, finish them off once and for all!"

"No," Redgic starkly replied. "I quit."

Don Kia was speechless for a moment, glancing back and forth between Redgic and the intruders, who likewise just kept smiling and watching him panic - which he did, a lot.

"H-huh? Quit? Hahaha," Don Kia stuttered. "Come on, Redgic, it's not like you to joke like that... Wait, I know!" He darted over to and dove into the rubble back behind his solid desk - essentially the only piece of furniture within the room that was still in one piece - and procured a hefty armful of the money he'd been counting, which was now getting somewhat soggy from the rain. He ran back over and desperately tried presenting it to Redgic. "You want more money for dealing with tough people like them, right? Well here, have a big bonus! And... and... and I'll double your normal payments! No, I'll triple it, just please-"

With this, Redgic finally had enough of Don Kia's petty selfishness. He turned around sharply and kicked him clear across the room.

"Enough, you scumbag!"

With Don Kia now only partially conscious and out of everyone's hair (or lobes) for the time being, Redgic decided to reach down and pick up a few bundles of bills anyway, treating himself to a generous severance package just because he could. He stashed it inside his now somewhat tattered upper coat as he began to walk. He passed by Goku, Pan, and Trunks, but he stopped just short of the now door-less exit.

"You know, it normally doesn't rain this time of year," he mentioned. He then turned his head back around to glance at Goku once more. "Son Goku," he said. "I'll be even stronger next time."

Goku flashed a grin back at him. "I ain't going to lose!"

With that, Redgic walked out through the door, turned a corner in the trashed hallway beyond, and vanished. After that, Trunks and Pan approached Goku more closely, and the latter spoke up in a curious tone.

"You're just letting him go, Grandpa?" she asked. "Isn't he, I dunno... dangerous?"

"Nah," Goku said. "I don't think he's really that bad a guy. It's true he said he killed a lot of people in th' past, but..." He looked up at her and continued with a slight smile on his face. "I could tell he didn't like it. He was actually sorry."

"But of course, you already told him your real reason," Trunks said. "You really do hope you get to fight him again, don't you?"

Goku grinned. "Sure do. He was really strong, and had some neat moves, too," he said, clenching both fists. "That final attack of his was really somethin' else. Wonder if I could maybe pull off something like that..."

The rain was now falling more heavily, freely pouring into the room due the the new-found lack of a roof or walls surrounding most of it. This, combined with the steady and low rumbling of thunder overhead, added a somewhat high-volume ambiance to the area. Unfortunately for Don Kia, it was not nearly loud or otherwise distracting enough to conceal his current escape attempt.

"Hold it right there, mister!" Once again, it was Pan who called him out, causing him to jolt back to behind his desk in terrified surprise. He poked his head up and tried to sound as brave as he could while desperately bargaining for his well-being.

"W-what do you want?" He demanded of them. "Money? Real estate? More artifacts? I'll give you anything!"

"D'ya have any food around?"

Goku was subsequently smacked in the head by Pan as Trunks walked forward and leaned on the desk.

"We'd like to propose some… " he paused purposefully, "… political reforms."

"That's right," Pan added sternly, walking forward a few steps herself. "After almost getting wiped out by Freeza, and now having to deal with you for so many years, the Imeggans have suffered enough!"

"Not to mention," Trunks continued, "there's a certain pesky something preventing us from leaving this planet."

Don Kia stared in stupefied horror for a moment before reaching over and picking up a bundle of bills. "Are you sure you don't just want some money instead? Please?"

Pan folded her arms and turned her head back to give a quick nod to Goku. Catching on, he chuckled a bit and began walking towards Don Kia, spinning his arm around in feigned anticipation of a beat-down.

"Waaagh! Okay, okay!" The chicken-hearted dictator pleaded. "I'll tell you! Don't hurt me!" He pointed out the open wall to his left, in the direction of the rocky desert. "T-the suppression field is generated by a series of small satellites in orbit, but the control center for them is a little ways off in that direction!"

"Are you suuuuure?" Goku flashed him an evil grin and cracked his knuckles.

"Aaaaah! Yes, I swear!"

"I think he's telling the truth," said Pan, who had gone to stand over at the edge of the floor and was straining her eyes to glimpse through the rain. "I can see something blinking way over there..."

"I can't sense anyone out that way, though. It must be mostly automated," Trunks concluded as he joined Pan by the edge. He then raised up one hand in the direction of the facility. "Good."

At that, a quick burst of Ki launched from his palm, and it illuminated the falling raindrops around it as it streaked through the air in the determined direction. A moment later, a massive explosion shook the ground beneath them and lit up the entire night landscape for a split second. The distant structure was now very decidedly out of working order, having been blown into a thousand pieces and all.

"Well," Goku said. "That was easier'n I thought it'd be."

"It usually is," Trunks said, turning back around. "People like Don Kia here tend to get over confident, and they make these things big and bold because they don't think anyone will ever be able to-" He stopped suddenly and looked around. "Hey, where'd he go?"

Only then did they realize that Don Kia had somehow slipped away while they were distracted, and only by sensing his tiny and rapidly-moving Ki did they know to where.

"He's... underground?"

"Hey!" Goku suddenly called out, having poked around the desk. "There's some kinda secret escape hole hidden under here! He musta snuck off while we weren't looking!"

"It's okay, we'll catch up with him later," Trunks said. "We've gotten what we wanted out of him for now. Besides, where does he have left to go at this point?"

"So, what do we do now?" Pan inquired. "We've got the ship back, we've got that energy field thing out of the way, we've found the Dragon Ball..."

"We freed a whole planet, too," Goku added. "I s'pose that was pretty c-"

He was interrupted when, all of a sudden, an abrupt and rapidly-increasing rumbling sound began resonating throughout the entire building below their feet. Just a few seconds later, with a massive roar, a large, breakaway floor panel burst open on the large deck just outside and one level down from Don Kia's office.

The three heroes glanced upwards, out through where the roof used to be, just in time to see a large, metallic, cylindrical object streak straight up into the sky, barely illuminated enough by its own high-energy propulsion for one to make out its shape through the rain and darkness. Through continuing to sense his Ki, the three were now easily able to tell just what the deposed Don Kia had been up to.

"Whoops," Goku said. "Guess now we know where he was going."

"Oh, great," Pan said. "He's getting away for sure."

"Oh, well," Trunks said. "I think it'll be okay. There's nothing more he can do."

"You're awfully eager to let these people escape," Pan complained.

"As for us… " Trunks ignored her criticism and patted the jacket pocket on his chest, within which the case containing the capsulized ship was currently stored. "Let's get out of here for now. In the morning, we'll check back in with the native Imeggans and then take off."

The three began casually walking towards the unconventionally-widened doorway, acting as though the society-changing feat they'd just accomplished was an ordinary thing, and one of them far more concerned about getting to eat a late dinner than about the absurdly high-level battle he'd just waged.

* * *

By all accounts, it had been a very unusual past couple of days for the Imeggan people. The latest group of unlucky "guests" to the planet had made quite an impression even on their first day, managing not only to defeat Shilla and Ghel like everyone else had, but to garner the personal attention of their boss. They then didn't settle just for evading the patrols searching for them, but even went so far as to sneak in and go after their ship right under Don Kia's nose, and actually succeeded, escaping alive and undeterred while managing to cause a huge ruckus.

Of course, the only reason anyone knew this was that the trio of troublemakers miraculously re-appeared within the humble abode of Futopa and Haquai that night, much like how they'd vanished only an hour before. Having stuck around only long enough to say "hi" and "thank you," they disappeared again and hadn't been seen since, leaving everyone to wonder just who these people were and not knowing at all what to expect next.

No matter what anyone might have guessed, by far the least-expected option would have been for the three brash young newcomers to go back a second time to Don Kia's estate. Yet, not only did this very much happen, but this time they did it without even the slightest predilection of stealth or subtlety. As the sirens of the grand mansion not only suddenly began, but continued to blare, and the flashes of small explosions could be seen around and within it from a distance, it became clear to the entire village that this attempt at an upheaval would not be like all the others before it.

To add to the sheer amount of oddities for the night, a freak rainstorm had rolled through out-of-season. Most of the Imeggans had not even registered the initial rumbles of thunder, as they had simply blended in with the booms and crashes echoing across the valley from the estate. Even the first light drizzle which heralded the storm had gone mostly unnoticed. Everyone quickly became aware of it, however, when that drizzle abruptly turned into a full downpour. By then, the majority of the proverbial fireworks had ended, leaving off with a massively explosive finale. The last thing anyone managed to glimpse before they had to take cover indoors from the deluge was one last, bright blue light, which appeared from the area of the estate's roof and disappeared into the dark and stormy sky. After that, all had remained relatively quiet for the night, save, of course, for the audible effects of the storm. And yet, that wasn't the end of the strangeness.

It was morning now, and in fact it had been for quite a while. Under normal circumstances, even after some night-time rowdiness in the past, the next day's schedule would always still continue on as normal without a hitch. The flying transports would arrive at dawn and cart off a few dozen listed Imeggans to the quarries and factories, where they would labor for the day, to be returned at dusk. In fact, on the days after bold attempts by outsiders, Don Kia, in his ever-childish fashion, would often take it out on the Imeggans by having the transports head out even earlier.

But today, they hadn't arrived at all. Accustomed to the routine, the working Imeggans were gathered within the village's spacious central clearing, the closest thing they had to a "town square," and patiently awaited the transports. Yet, here it was late morning already, and there were still no transports.

The sun was by now quite high in the sky, aptly sharing the space with the scattered few, small clouds which still lingered after the freak storm from the previous night. The weather had heralded an unusually cool and comfortable atmosphere, which in part helped make up for the confusion felt by the gathered crowd - a crowd which, at this point, no longer consisted of merely the workers, but their families and friends as well.

Futopa and Haquai, being among the lucky elderly who were not mandated to perform physical labor, were not originally among the group gathered in the square. As exciting as the events of last night had been, folks of their age needed sleep, and they'd still been peacefully slumbering come a bit after daybreak, when their neighbors woke them eagerly. Now a short while later, they hobbled their way out into the open as well, where they joined the growing crowd. Their presence was immediately noticed and, being the ones most familiar with the infamous and elusive trio of aliens, they were swarmed by a sizable number of fellow villagers, all curious and rife with questions.

"Futopa, Haquai," inquired Esca, one of the younger men who had gathered at dawn for work. "Have you seen or heard from them? Did they tell you what happened?"

"I'm afraid not," Futopa barely got a reply in. "They were only here for but a moment and left right away, so we didn't get to-"

Esca's wife, Rilca, followed close after him, cradling a still-slumbering toddler, and pitched in. "Did they at least say where they were going or what they were planning? Do you think they already left the planet?"

Another worker, a middle-aged man, crowded them as well, succeeded by several others. "Does anyone know what Don Kia's up to now? Why haven't the transports come?"

The crowd seemed to thicken around Futopa and Haquai, but otherwise nothing really changed, due in part to it becoming obvious how similarly-clueless the elderly couple were. Everyone continued warily chattering amongst themselves, unsure of what to do, now that their harsh and rigorous schedule had been broken for the first time in years.

"Uh... hi!"

The gathering was immediately silenced, and its attentions unanimously drew to a single point. At the eastern end of the mid-village clearing was the open end of a path which, when followed all the way, ultimately led outside of the village and widened on its way through the valley to Don Kia's estate. It was a route which any given Imeggan preferred never to see someone coming down, much less ever traverse themselves. Either instance usually meant bad news for them - until today.

Standing there now, having just entered the area and laid eyes upon the crowd, were the trio of new travelers. They carried themselves in a relaxed and nonchalant manner, in vivid contrast to the distressed and confounded natives before them. The young female one failed to hold back a yawn before she spoke.

"Man, this is way too early for me," she remarked.

The smallest one of the three looked quite chipper, unaffected by the relatively early hour, and ignored her as he waved amicably to the Imeggans.

"How're you guys doing?"

The crowd abruptly shifted over and crammed themselves around the three, their focus now decisively transferred as well. Somehow, Futopa and Haquai managed to butt their way through and reach them.

"Oh, thank the heavens," Haquai exclaimed. "You're all okay!"

"We were worried that you'd perished during all that rowdiness last night," Futopa said. "It's a miracle you made it out of there alive, doing what you did."

"Oh yeah, we're fine," Goku replied, acting as though the entire ordeal was no big issue. "We just wanted to check in with you guys before we took off."

"Well, we're just glad you're alright," Haquai replied. "I'm sure at this point you've realized that... Wait, what?"

"Uh, that's right," said Pan, the girl among the alien visitors. "I guess we should mention that we kind of, uh... managed to kick Don Kia out."

The entire crowd could, for a moment, do nothing but stand there in shock and attempt to process what they'd just been told.

"He blasted off right after I beat Redgic, though," Goku continued. "So sorry if you all wanted him for anything. Oh, and hey, you guys weren't kiddin' about that guy, either!" Goku gleefully recalled his tussle with the fearsome bodyguard. "He wasn't quite as good as Freeza like you said, but he was really strong! Stronger than I expected anyone out here to be!"

"You... you can't be serious!" Futopa stammered, as if not willing to believe what he was being told. "You mean to say... you actually fought and won? That... we're free?"

"I guess so!" Pan exclaimed, somehow managing to be quite proud of herself despite her minimal role in the coup. "Actually, there's still a whole bunch of Don Kia's guards left hanging around, but somehow it doesn't seem like they're going to cause any more trouble."

"Yeah, I don't think they liked Don Kia much either," Goku commented while giggling a bit. "Once they saw how strong we were, a lot of them just let us go right past them when we broke in!"

"They were all just hired mercenaries, after all," Trunks explained, trying to paint them in a good light for the Imeggans. "So it wasn't anything personal, for the most part. Some of them even told us after everything last night that they'd be willing to help you guys out a bit before they leave."

"This..." A young but weary-looking Imeggan woman towards the front of the crowd was nearly in tears. "This can't be true, can it? You're not lying to us, are you?"

"Nope, it's true!" Goku exclaimed. "You guys can feel free to... I dunno, loot his mansion or something, if you want!"

His offhand jest was met only with stunned and silent stares and a few mumbles of straggling disbelief here and there.

"Uh, sorry," Goku said. "I guess you're not really int-" He was interrupted when, all at once, the crowd began to cheer and holler. The entire congregation became one gigantic huddled mass of utter glee and relief, with some chanting, some dancing, and some simply beginning to cry for joy. A few individuals managed to run up and either hug or briskly shake the hands of their saviors, but then jumped right back into the revelry with everyone else.

"Well," Pan observed after a few minutes. "I guess they liked the good news."

"You three," came a familiar voice. Futopa and Haquai had managed to hobble their way back through the constantly-morphing crowd and now stood before them again. "How can we ever hope to repay you?" Haquai asked. "We could never have dreamed, after all these years, that someone would come in and boot out that foul rascal in one quick sweep like that. There's still a lot of rebuilding for us to do, but... You've given us a little bit of hope, for the first time in a very long while!"

"I ain't worried about you guys," Goku said with a warm smile. "It's like you told us, right? You Imeggans are tough. You'll get through it."

Both elderly folks returned the warm smile. "Nevertheless," Futopa said. "Thank you all."

"Really, no need to thank us," Pan waved her arms, though her somewhat haughty grin revealed that she was enjoying soaking up the flattery more than she let on.

"We came here looking for something very important," said Trunks, his humility somewhat more genuine, "and we found it in the end. That's what matters to us."

"Oh, that's right!" Pan whipped off her backpack, swiftly opened it up, and pulled out both Dragon Balls. She displayed one in each hand, the four-star and seven-star balls, and their smooth glassy finishes glimmered brightly in the morning sunlight. "See! Our first recovered Dragon Ball!"

"So that's what you were after?" Haquai leaned down to examine them. "What are they?"

"They're magic," Goku explained. "Used for granting wishes. But these ones are a little TOO magical, and now Earth is in danger." He looked up and laughed again. "We've been savin' your planet AND ours!"

At that moment, someone else decided to make his re-entrance. The little robot poked its curious-looking, minuscule form out from Pan's open backpack, then hopped itself out entirely. It gazed around, bewildered at all the hustle and bustle as it muttered its usual noises.

"Gigigigigi..."

"Well, look at you, little fellow," Futopa said, greeting his rescued find. "I suppose you'll be going long with these nice folks." He and Haquai were then suddenly approached by a neighbor of theirs and demanded to join some particular impromptu block party or another. They had no option but to wave amicably as they were pulled away for the time being.

"Not like we have any choice but to take him," Pan said, scooping the robot up and looking him over. "He absorbed the Dragon Radar, so we need him now, at least until we can crack him open and figure out how to get it out it of him." She once more began shaking the robot around a bit, much to his distress.

"Gigigigi! Danger! Danger!"

"I don't see any need for that," Trunks said, saving the little guy from Pan by snatching him away. He looked him over warmly. "It might be nice having an extra crew member around. The more, the merrier on a long trip like this, right?"

"So, we saved a planet, found a Dragon Ball, an' got ourselves a new friend all at once, huh?" Goku said. "This trip's off to a good start!" He suddenly realized something. "Hey, what are we gonna call the little guy?"

"You're right, I guess that's kind of important, huh?" Trunks remarked. He held the robot up and looked him in his big, red, glassy eye. "Do you have a name, pal?"

"Gigigigigi," it answered. "Designation: DB4649T2006RS!"

"Bwuuuh?" Goku was lost with all the numbers. "I can't remember that! I'm still trying to learn the names of everyone at the old-timer Kaio's place, and their names are all goofy and easy t' remember puns!"

"Gigigigigi!"

"Oh, why don't we just call him Gill?" Pan said, a little annoyed. "Like the stupid noises he keeps making."

"Hey, that's not actually too bad!" Trunks said, addressing the robot. "You like that?"

"Gigigigi!" Gill certainly seemed pleased about his new-found place in the crew. He continued chirping happily as Goku yanked him away from Trunks and enthusiastically held him over his own head. Goku looked him right in the eye and spoke.

"It's decided, then," He proudly declared. "Welcome aboard, Gill!"

What he or anyone else didn't and couldn't see, however, was that beneath Gill's outer plating, deep within the delicate depths of his processor, certain sensor switches repeatedly fired and signaled as he recorded data… which he had been doing for quite some time now.

* * *

A day or two later…

A small and rocky planetoid hovered around lazily in space, as it had been doing for eons. It traveled idly along its typical long, wide orbit. Strangely enough, it was the only even halfway-noteworthy heavenly body around its unnecessarily large, bright blue super star. The planetoid was completely devoid of any natural form of life, little more than a solid, chunky, cold little rock floating around in nothingness, doing nothing. Yet, this seemingly worthless and barren quality made it perfect for things like secret, sinister outposts for secretive, sinister people. And, wouldn't you know it, that's exactly what it had.

The base was contained almost entirely underground, and the only even partially-noticeable evidence of its existence was a pair of modestly-sized round hatches on the surface, which blended in rather inconspicuously with the flat and rocky terrain around it, even being more-or-less the same color. They were almost impossible to detect until you were right on top of them.

Hence why the individual rapidly descending within a small and fast cylindrical spacecraft was quite worried by the rate at which he was falling, considering the apparent, very much closed-ness of both of the hatches. But at the last possible moment, the one within his trajectory twisted itself open in a hexagonal swirl pattern, its sides shrinking away from the center to create a gap sizable enough for the ship to carry on through.

Just a few minutes later, thanks to the automated guidance systems of both itself and the base, the vessel had made a smooth and precise landing, and Don Kia had safely disembarked. He'd visited this place on several occasions before, and its layout wasn't entirely complicated, so he managed to make his way through its uniform and industrial corridors without too much difficulty.

At long last, Don Kia came upon the individual whom he'd set foot on this desolate world to meet in the first place. He found him, as expected, within the outpost's command center, his only other company being a small number of assorted miniature robots, all wheeling and flying about, operating various sorts of business. The individual's tall, muscular and imposing figure was seated calmly and authoritatively within a large chair in the center of the dark room, currently facing towards some screens and with his back to Don Kia as he entered.

"That was quick."

Don Kia smiled nervously a bit and did his best to keep his tone respectful as he replied.

"But of course," he said. "I never keep such a dependable and loyal customer waiting."

"Still ever the shrewd businessman, I see," the figure observed. He spun his chair around to face Don Kia now, and the expression upon his strong and square-jawed visage was one of stern, yet genuine attention. "But I'm afraid I'm somewhat too busy for unnecessary pleasantries. So now, why did you wish to meet with me on such short and sudden notice?"

"Yes, thank you so much for your swift response," Don Kia replied. "Well, as it seems, I've found myself having some rather unfortunate... control issues, per se, back on Imegga."

"... I see."

"I'm afraid that due to some unexpected outside influence, my sovereignty has come to be in danger. A band of violent interlopers have decided to instate anarchy, and not only have my hired forces proven unreliable, but even my personal bodyguard as well." He gestured to his host warmly. "Being that business relations between myself and your, um, colleague have been so productive and mutually beneficial up to this point, I was hoping we could work out some sort of cooperative course of action to, in a sense, restore the status quo..."

The figure brought his hands up to his face, touching the tips of his massive fingers together as he pondered Don Kia's proposal. "So in short," he summarized, "you've been ousted and robbed of your leadership of Imegga, and you want us to help you get it back."

"Ah, well," Don Kia was taken a bit aback. "You make it sound so one-sided. Yes, granted, I'm the one coming to you in need, but of course, I'd make it worth your while. I'm sure I could oblige you in any one of many ways... Does a 25% discount on your future Enlium shipments interest you, for example?"

"To be frank," the figure unexpectedly said, "no, it doesn't." He then stood up from his chair, towering over Don Kia at almost twice his height, and continued to speak. "In fact, as it stands, the 'status quo,' as you call it, was about to be upset in any case. Your loss of command over Imegga merely expedites things a bit."

"H-huh?" Don Kia was confused. "I'm sorry, but what do y-"

"I'm afraid that putting you back in charge would be a waste of time and resources on our part," he explained. "You see, our current goals are on the verge of a major shift, and very soon we'll no longer have such a profound need, or any at all really, of your particular services. In fact," he noted, "I have to thank you for coming all the way here. You've saved me quite a bit of personal effort."

"What?" Don Kia couldn't see what was coming. "How?"

"Like I said, our goals are changing," the tall figure left his position beside his chair and began walking towards Don Kia at the room's entrance ever so steadily. "This has necessitated the tying up of a fair amount of loose ends, so to speak, which is why I happen to already be out and about in this sector of the galaxy." He now stood right in front of Don Kia, who, despite still not fully comprehending what was happening, was rightfully scared witless.

"And in that regard, you've saved me the trip all the way to Imegga."

That's when it finally fully 'clicked' for Don Kia.

"N-nooo!" His cowardice fueled his energy and determination, and he turned around and started running out the door. He didn't even make it out of the massive figure's arm's reach, as he was suddenly and forcefully grasped by the back of his head and lifted off the ground.

"I apologize for dealing you such a brief... termination," the threatening individual said with only partially-genuine remorse. "But you know far too much."

"No, please!" Don Kia began to plead, desperately and fruitlessly grasping at his assailant's cold and steel-like grip, as the other massive hand smoothly but firmly grasped the entirety of his shoulders around the base of his neck. "I'll do anything you say! I promise, I won't tell anyone about your-"

But suddenly, he could no longer speak, because his mouth and throat no longer had any physical connection to his lungs.

The tall figure dropped both now-separate parts of the late Don Kia to the floor, showing no emotion in light of his own brutality beyond one of solemn and machine-like duty. He calmly stepped over the mess and made his way back to the outpost's small hangar bay, where his own personal spacecraft awaited him.

Five minutes later, the entire planetoid, not to mention the outpost, no longer existed.


	14. I Need A Hero

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED**

By Kaboom Krusader

Chapter Fourteen – _"I Need a Hero"_

It was a bright and sunny day in Satan City, and everything and everyone within it felt absolutely energetic. The birds were singing, the citizens were chattering, and the squirrels were chirping or clicking or squeaking or making whatever noise squirrels make.

Oh, and there were also sirens blaring.

Satan City was obviously no stranger to crime. Something about it being named for the world's champion and savior somehow seemed to only encourage crooks and fiends to gravitate towards it like flies to a delicious apple pie... an apple pie baked with cinnamon and nutmeg, with a decadently flaky crust, and cream frosting which lay upon it like a newly-fallen gentle layer of delicious snow. Oh dear Dende, the author wishes he wasn't on a diet. Anyway, the proverbial forbidden pie in this instance was the rather large Satan City branch of West City Savings and Loan, a notably large bank chain, and it was currently in the middle of a rather tense holdup. With hostages.

Again.

As she sat off in a corner, herded there a few minutes ago with the other captives so they wouldn't be able to cause trouble, Cherry began to genuinely rethink her career. She was surprisingly calm compared to the other civilians rounded up with her. After all, it'd been barely a month since the last time she'd gone through this.

The perpetrators this time around were the polar opposites of the gang responsible for the prior heist attempt, posing a danger through their tactics rather than brute firepower. The previous ruffians were unkempt and brusque, making no attempt at subtlety as they charged headlong into the bank, armed to their soon-departed teeth. But these criminals were a completely different story. All five of them had worked their way in one at a time, posing as normal bank patrons. Dressed in attire both casual and classy businessman alike, they'd mingled themselves among the others in the lobby, until suddenly, once they'd all reached their optimum positions, they produced handguns and got down to business.

These guys were intelligent and efficient, and within five minutes their well-coordinated heist was already almost over. Using some advanced computer equipment produced from capsules, they'd not only cracked the thumbprint-coded safe in order to pilfer the millions of Zeni's worth of physical banknotes within, but also gained access to the bank's supposedly-secure online network to download a plethora of confidential customer information. Now, with the police still barely en route, the crooks had nearly completed their operation on both fronts, and they were beginning the transition to their "escape" phase. Based on what Cherry and the other captives could gather from the conversation, one of the criminals, seen going through an employees-only door a minute ago, was making his way up to the roof with a capsule for an airplane while the others finished up below. Thanks to the swift and efficient execution of their plan, it seemed as if they were going to make a clean getaway…

When suddenly, they weren't anymore. All eyes within the bank were abruptly directed towards the windowed front end of the lobby, as the force of something large, speedily crashing down against the street outside, caused the entire floor to shudder, resonating with a loud _CRUNCH_.

Despite the damage dealt to it, the object lying against the cracked pavement was still easily identifiable as the criminals' intended escape vehicle; a relatively small multi-person jet, designed to quickly and efficiently move several people with minimal cargo, as though it were designed for just the very purpose of fleeing from bank heists. It was now thoroughly trashed, its light frame too disfigured to be flying anywhere anytime soon. But that wasn't even the most unusual thing happening at the moment. No, that esteemed title was reserved for what, or rather, for _who_ appeared next.

To start, he floated in the air, coming down from out of view above the door frame to touch down outside right beside the plane wreckage. That was odd enough in and of itself. But even stranger was how the figure was dressed. His tall and athletic frame was covered apparently from head to toe in a black, skintight bodysuit, with white gloves and boots adorning his hands and feet. His torso and waist were wrapped by a folded green tunic, held in place by a large black belt, and an impressive looking red cape was attached to his shoulders and drifted lightly with the afternoon breeze. To _top_ it all off (if the readers will excuse the pun), all of his head, save for his mouth, was covered up by a rather flamboyant helmet, with a large visor and a pair of antennae, which made him altogether look like some sort of man-sized bug robot.

He was quite evidently the cause of the unexpected sabotage of the thieves' plans, as, while one of his arms was angled with a curled fist propped proudly against his waist, the other arm held the particular crook, now clearly unconscious, who'd been assigned to the roof just a few minutes ago. The perp slumped to the ground as the mysterious vigilante let go of him and walked in through the doors. He stopped square in the middle of the lobby, where he folded his arms and finally spoke.

"No need to fear, gentle citizens!" he proclaimed. "Please remain calm! I assure you, this will all be over in a flash!"

And, for a short time, all was actually quite calm, as both the hostage-holders and hostages simply stared blankly at this absurdly-dressed individual, not sure what to make of his newfound presence within the situation. After a moment, one of the crooks arrived at, and elegantly verbalized, his own conclusion.

"… Who's this stupid freak?"

The others in his group were equally unimpressed, having no idea just who they were facing. But Cherry knew better. Her mind flashed back to years ago when she was a little girl, seeing and hearing all the reports about his exploits. She remembered cheering for him while listening to radio broadcasts of the 25th World Tournament. She remembered constantly keeping an eye on the sky during the years she spent growing up here in Satan City, hoping to catch even a small glimpse of him, and being saddened as his appearances became less and less frequent over a few years until he seemed to disappear altogether. But, above all, she remembered how much good he'd done for the city.

Cherry realized just how much trouble these criminals were in. They, however, did not, which was unfortunate for them.

"Who am I?" The stupid freak replied. "Are you sure you want to know?"

With that he began to, of all things, strike poses. He raised both his hands, first crossing one over in front of him in a chopping gesture, then switching to stick out the other and do some sort of weird jazz-hands motion.

"I am… the returning hero – The champion of justice!"

He then leaned forward, balancing on one foot before performing a rapid series of stomps with both feet which finished with a firm palm to the ground.

"He who does not abide evil – The one and only, the mighty…"

Lastly, he crossed both arms in front of him, before arcing them up and bringing his hands together to point down at his own forehead.

"… Great Saiyaman!"

There was another long moment of silence, as for a time all persons on both sides of the law were united in stupefied confusion. Even Cherry had to admit that she'd never been particularly fond of _that_ aspect of Saiyaman's routine.

"We don't have time for this," said the leader of the group, dressed in businessman garb and currently occupied with the money pilfering. He motioned to the man on guard duty closest to the eccentric intruder. "Zap this nutjob so he'll get out of the way."

"Sure thing," the subordinate replied, taking a step or two forward as he produced a small gadget from the knapsack which had served as part of his initial disguise. It was a taser, which, though shaped vaguely like a handgun, was a non-lethal method of detainment deemed suitable by the ne'er-do-wells for keeping control over their hostages and any would-be heroes.

However, it proved to have little effect on the _actual_ hero before them, whom had abandoned his juvenile finishing pose and resumed his prior fists-on-hips stance. The crook took quick aim and fired the device, which quickly launched a pair of wired receptors upon Saiyaman's chest. With the press of another button on the taser, a surge of electricity shot through the wires. Any regular human would have been neatly incapacitated, but it quickly became evident that this man was no such regular human.

The wires buzzed and jumped as they did exactly what they were built to do, but to no effect. After a few seconds, Saiyaman grinned as he brought up his left hand and swatted the wires away.

"Hahaha!" He produced a hearty and corny laugh. "Your weapons have no effect on me!"

"What the-" The unsuccessful taser-wielder was taken aback. "Feh, he must be wearing an insulated vest!" With that, he reached into his hooded sweater, pulling out a revolver handgun and aiming it directly at Saiyaman. "Alright, crackpot," he said, "what if I just shoot you instead?"

A wry smile formed below Saiyaman's glass visor. "I suppose I'd have had to catch the bullet," he responded, "wouldn't I?"

He did.

It was so fast that some of the witnesses could swear he actually started moving his hand before the trigger was even pulled. Maybe it was magic, maybe it was precognition, or maybe it was just reflexes and speed beyond anything a mortal human should be capable of. But one way or another, there the bullet was, neatly clutched between his thumb and index finger at about arm's length in front of him, before his assailant had even recovered from the gun's kickback.

"I thought I told you!" the now evidently very real superhero restated, as he made a show of letting the bullet drop to the tiled floor. "Your guns are useless against me!"

"No way…" The shooter was quaking in his shoes as he steadily walked backwards. "This guy is… this guy is the real deal!"

"Get out of the way!" Another of the perpetrators, a taller and bulkier man, moved forward to take his retreating comrade's place. He wielded something a bit more powerful: a high-powered rifle which he had produced from a capsule while witnessing his teammate's failure.

As Saiyaman resumed walking forward, a slight smile still present under his mask, the man quickly took aim and fired. Saiyaman simply swung out his arm faster than any of them could track and swiped that bullet out of the air as well. As he let it drop to the ground harmlessly, the panicking, though no less determined, thug moved forward as well, holding the gun directly up to Saiyaman's chest at point blank range.

As he pulled the trigger, Saiyaman reached out and, in a move straight out of an old cartoon, plugged the barrel with his finger. The gun lost the ensuing little clash of power. It burst as the expanding gases were left with no exit, and its handler was knocked backwards onto his rear by the recoil.

"Always wanted to try that," Saiyaman noted, as he took hold of the rifle with both hands and easily snapped it in half as though it were made of styrofoam.

"Well, gentlemen," he said, cracking his knuckles, "how shall we proceed?"

* * *

We now turn to a happy little scene, set not too far away from, nor long since the last one, in the expansive and majestic Satan City Park. The warm and mostly-sunny weather made this particular June afternoon an ideal day for outings of all kinds. People were out partaking in dates, picnics, drum circles, and all sorts of other wholesome public activity, happy to be outside and enjoying the beautiful day in a world that evidently doesn't prioritize the internet nearly as much as the real one. Even a particular little squirrel seemed to be thrilled by the relaxing environment, happily chirping, clicking, and squeaking as he busily ferried nuts back and forth to his tree by the pond's edge. Yes, it was an all-in-all wonderful day… aside from the fire.

The squirrel hadn't noticed it at first. After all, being a squirrel, his brain was about the same size of one of the precious nuts he collected, which explained his profound single-mindedness and general lack of perception skills. But even this bushy-tailed little dimwit couldn't help but observe after a few minutes that all the previously calm humans trotting about the area were now acting quite frantic and panicked. Furthermore, that bright orange, glowing whatchamacallit was no longer quite as small and far away as it had been when the squirrel first noticed and subsequently ignored it.

So now, he sat halfway up his tree, his attention miraculously diverted away from his nuts. He stared curiously at all the hustle and bustle, still having no clue whatsoever as to what was going on. He began pondering what to do, since the orange, glowy thingamajig was getting very, very close, and something in the air felt different because of it. It was all very weird.

Even weirder was the human who chose to appear at that moment. That wasn't just thanks to the ridiculous, full-body outfit which even a squirrel could somehow recognize as profoundly unfashionable. This human was floating in the air. Now, the squirrel had been somewhat confused already, but this really turned the bizarre gauge up to 11. Normally, humans didn't fly unless they were in one of those big, noisy metal things which they made poof out of thin air somehow. But, this particular human was doing it all on his own, just floating there some small distance above the pond, directly on the opposite side of the squirrel's tree from the ever-growing, big orange glowing thing.

The squirrel continued simply staring, bewildered out of his dippy little mind, entirely unsure about what was going to happen next. He gazed with focused fascination as, after the man finished speaking, he simply held out one outstretched arm towards the pond.

Then there was water. So much water.

For a split second, something like a small shimmer in the air was visible in the space between the human's arm and the water. But there was no time to ponder what it was before the water in the pond - ALL the water in the pond - was suddenly and forcefully thrust out from its place in the ground and into the air. A veritable wave, dotted with lily pads and pond debris, arced through the air and crashed down into the tree, rushing past it and dousing the hot orange threat beyond.

A moment later, the chaos had subsided. The nearby humans were displeased at the drenched state they'd been granted, but they were at the same time grateful that the threat was neutralized. The squirrel, however, was far less understanding and even less forgiving.

He had barely survived the onslaught of dingy pond water, only avoiding getting washed away due to a firm and lucky grip on a solid nearby branch, which in turn was partially shielded by an even larger one. He clung to it for his life, panicked and terrified, trying and failing to process what had just happened. In the end, all his little rodent brain could tell him was that he had been attacked, and by whom. His basic fight-or-flight instincts kicked in, but since his attacker could fly, the squirrel understood that escaping was unlikely to be successful. Fortunately for the squirrel, however, his assailant had chosen to lower himself down towards the ground where the other people were. His path of descent brought him within mere feet of the squirrel's branch, within optimal striking range.

The flying human hadn't even seen what was coming until it was too late. There was suddenly a soggy, angry rat latched onto him with a ferocity that would make a savage, carnivorous dinosaur beam with pride, and the odd helmet and visor covering his face was not nearly enough to protect him from the squirrel's wrath.

"Aaaaaaugh!"

* * *

Elsewhere in the city, some considerable distance away from our previous bit of entertainment, a particular group of high-society individuals were having their _own_ fun. The rooftop of a certain high-end, five-star hotel was currently the setting of a fancy benefit gala thrown by the hotel chain's founder. It was the sort of thing which people with way too much money would set up, in order to make the incalculably small percentage of their net worth they'd donated to some cause or another seem like something big and play up their faux "such a generous person" image to the press. Nine out of every ten people who were actually invited to these charades would do the same and share in the individual's self-worth while sipping on expensive wine. The remaining ten percent were assorted people attending for some other reason, most of which were uncomfortable or put-off by the ultra high-class atmosphere and thus sipping on even more expensive wine.

One such individual from the latter category was presently enjoying moderate success in distancing herself from all the talking wallets and had situated herself by the rooftop's edge. She'd gotten her "duties" at the party as a cultural reporter out of the way, and she was finally able to relax. So here, with her fourth, half-finished glass of wine in hand, she idly leaned against a railing and admired the view. The strong breeze up here helped keep her alert, despite her building tipsiness from the drinks. She was glad she'd recently gone back to a shorter cut for her naturally blonde hair like she'd had back in high school; otherwise, the wind would have been whipping it around annoyingly.

After pausing to take another sip, she refocused her gaze out into the distant urban venues. This particular rooftop didn't even come close to the height of the more intimidating towers within Satan City, but it was still high enough to provide a quite pleasant outlook of the surrounding skyline. Particularly fetching from this angle was the view of the central city park, and it was in this that she had been soaking for the most part - not just because of its prominence only a few blocks away, but also because of the growing plume of smoke which had been rising from within it for about five straight minutes.

Evidently, there was a relatively small fire somewhere close to one of the ponds in the park. But, based on the smoke beginning to recede and thin out, it seemed to have been dealt with rather swiftly, which was good. A raging blaze that ate up a huge chunk of a park would be major news. But a small, localized, extinguished-in-minutes fire was worth nothing more than a small blurb in an ending page, which meant that her buzz-induced good mood was in no danger from the prospect of having more work.

Then, something else caught her eye. From within the sea of trees, right next to the now-nonexistent fire, something rose up into the air. She leaned forward a bit against the railing, one hand gripping it while the other still held her drink, and strained her eyes to see. But for all her effort, its small size kept her from making out what it was, and her slightly fuzzy vision didn't help, either.

But, as luck would have it, the mystery object began to move in her general direction, taking a course above the streets at a relaxed pace. As it steadily approached, she was able to pick out a little more detail. The first things that became obvious were its colors; the object was primarily bright shades of red and green. A few more seconds, and even more surprisingly, it was identifiable as a person. He was flying through the air on his own power, and the bright red part appeared to be an all-too-appropriate cape…

No way.

It couldn't be.

One moment, she was leaning forward to the point where she was practically teetering on the railing against her stomach, desperate to get as good a look as possible at the flying person so she could be sure her somewhat-dulled brain wasn't playing tricks on her. The next, she was looking at the street.

Another second later and she was still looking at the street, except now, it looked a lot bigger than it did before. She was falling. She'd lost her balance in her tipsiness and rampant curiosity, tumbled headfirst over the railing, and was now plummeting down towards the sidewalk at a terminal velocity. Most people would be terrified and screaming, far too much so to realize and confirm their situations to themselves with such clarity. But in this case, she knew she would be alright. Just before her view had abruptly changed, she'd succeeded in getting the closer look she wanted. She knew exactly who the flying person was, and she was positive that she wouldn't be hitting that pavement anytime soon. She was right.

She let out an "oof" as she was caught, as the impact was still a bit rough despite her rescuer homing in on her at a downward angle to minimize the whiplash. As he held on to her in a typical "carrying the princess" manner, he controlled the flow of momentum and arced back up again. Once they were cruising along at a calmer pace, he took the initiative to speak to her in the fittingly corny and macho style expected of someone running around, playing superhero.

"You're quite lucky, miss!" he proclaimed. "If I hadn't been flying this way, I might not have noticed you!"

"Well, hello to you, too, Mister Saiyaman!" she answered. "Long time, no see!"

Upon hearing her voice for the first time, the superhero was shocked. While most of his face was covered up by his ornate flight helmet, it was still easy to see the expression of surprise and recognition he adopted.

"Erasa?" he stammered. "Uh… hi. How've you been?"

"Oh, not bad," she said. "Aside from my new base-jumping hobby, anyway. What about you? Family doing okay? I saw pictures of your newest little one. He's getting big fast, isn't he?"

"Yeah, uh, they're all doing great," he awkwardly replied. "Older one's kind of on vacation right now, and my teaching job slows to a crawl in the summer, so I've got a lot of free time right now…"

"I wouldn't have guessed," she dryly replied, tugging a bit at the edge of his costume to playfully emphasize her point. She then took another glance upwards and noticed what appeared to be some fresh, red scratch marks. "Hey, what happened to your f-BLEEEERGH!"

A minute later, and the two both had their feet thankfully planted on a nice and solid, but less elevated, rooftop. Like the last one Erasa had set foot on, this one was designed for relaxation and habitation, adorned with a nice little garden strewn with benches. While the defaced superhero attempted to wipe away whatever he could from his tunic with only moderate success, Erasa was partaking generously from a water fountain. Once they were both satisfactorily recovered from their respective trauma, they prepared to part ways.

"Sorry about that," Erasa repeated. "Guess it took a minute for my stomach and brain to realize what just happened to me."

"Well, if you'll be okay now, I have to get going," Saiyaman said. "I think I hear sirens."

"Yeah, no problem," Erasa replied, wiping her mouth with her sleeve. "You go have fun. Tell Videl I'll catch her on SpaceBook later so we can meet for lunch or something."

"Sure, I will."

"Oh, and I don't know if you knew already, but Shapner's getting an early start on organizing a 20-year reunion. He was hoping to get your brainy help with the logistics of all that."

"Uh…okay, I'll give him a call."

"Thanks! See you around!" Erasa waved enthusiastically, which he returned, somewhat more meekly, before zooming off into the sky. She stood there for a moment, watching him go.

"Aw, damnit," she suddenly exclaimed. "I left my jacket back at the party."

* * *

For the next trick, we turn to a scene with a tried and true cliché. Within the heart of Satan City's skyscraper-covered streets was its entertainment district. Within that district were many attractions, theaters, and, especially, shops. Among those shops was a particular electronic appliances store. That store had a window. Inside the window was a single large, 60-inch ultra-definition television, and outside the window were a number of people on the sidewalk watching that television. Bam, there you have it.

To further carry on the trope, the TV was appropriately tuned to the local major news network for Satan City, and, you guessed it, they currently had dramatic coverage of a breaking story. The live footage showed a black limousine careening along a busy downtown street, weaving in and out between other vehicles as a small group of police cars gave chase. The title for the event told the station's viewers that it was a carjacking, and a very high-profile individual was still inside the limo, either as just a hapless hostage or even the target of the crime.

The small group of people watched the screen intently, each with varying degrees of concern for the situation at hand, and one or two of them thinking little of it beyond, "Hey, that's a very nice limo." But, after about a minute since the scene started, they began to realize a particular connection with what they were seeing on the screen.

"Hey," an old man among them piped up. "Isn't that…"

It was. They barely even heard the police sirens and the hushed roar of the news plane's engine before, in front of their eyes, that limousine zoomed past them, right there on that very same street. Most of them were taken entirely by surprise, some of them managed to see it coming and dart back away from the street for extra safety, and one had the brilliant idea of waving while looking at the TV, so he could see himself on the TV waving while looking at the TV.

Only a few seconds behind the limousine, as expected, were the police cruisers. They had a bit more room than their predecessor, seeing as how most other drivers on the road had realized the need to move aside, but they still didn't seem to be making much progress in closing the distance.

Fortunately, they had some unusual backup. Mere seconds after the police cars passed by, a third player entered the field. Prior to the breakout coverage of the carjacking, the news network on the television had been on the topic of this character's spotted appearances within Satan City throughout the day. Now, here he was, appearing out of the blue in the air over their heads as though just to confirm the reports.

Flying a few dozen feet above the ground, the Great Saiyaman arced majestically down the street from around the nearest corner, evidently having just zeroed in and intercepted the car chase from elsewhere in the city. He soared with fervent intent after the speeding vehicles, leaving the awestruck window shoppers among plenty of others in his wake.

It didn't take long at all for him to catch up to his prey, and he landed deftly on the rearmost section of the limousine's roof. For a moment he simply stood there, totally unperturbed by the high-speed wind rushing past him. He posed heroically with his fists on his hips for a moment, most likely in light of the news plane still following and aiming a camera at the whole ordeal. He then turned around to face the rear of the car and, calmly and carefully, reached down with both hands towards the very end of the roof.

With amazing strength that came nearly effortlessly, he plunged both his hands though the aluminum outer shell of the car and grasped it tightly. Taking a few steps backwards, he began to simply peel away the roof of the car as though he were opening a tin can.

Needless to say, those inside the vehicle were surprised and flabbergasted by the feat. At first, only two of them were visible. The hostage, a well-dressed, middle-aged man with a bony, bespectacled face and not quite enough combed-back, dirty blonde hair to cover his budding bald spot, was held at gunpoint by a rather slick-looking man in a black suit and sunglasses. Both of them did nothing but stare upwards, flabbergasted at the sight of this newcomer looking down at them from where the roof used to be.

"Good afternoon," Saiyaman chipperly spoke up. "Room for one more?"

The gunman, now shifting from surprised to agitated at Saiyaman's flippant tone, finally took action by whipping his semi-automatic gun upwards and letting off a few rounds point-blank at the hero. To his shock, Saiyaman rapidly blocked every single round with the palm of one gloved hand, letting the wasted bullets fall harmlessly onto the street behind the vehicle.

"So that's a no?" he continued. "Don't worry, I can fix that."

He kneeled down and reached into the car with both hands. With one, he quickly grasped the criminal's gun and shattered it with a single, easy squeeze before it could be used again. With the other, he firmly grabbed the gunman himself by the front of his suit jacket, and then stood up so as to lift him clear out of the top of the car.

There he paused for a moment, letting the crook freak out in his grasp while he searched for a chance to do something with him. A few seconds later, he saw that chance coming. They were closing in on a large street intersection, and approaching from the opposite direction was another pair of police cars. With their sirens and lights at full blast, they were impossible to miss, and the limousine's unofficial driver reacted exactly as Saiyaman expected him to. He slammed on the brakes as they entered the intersection and cut their direction hard to the right in an effort to avoid the cruisers.

The limousine's speed dropped significantly as they turned the corner, and Saiyaman didn't let the opportunity go to waste. He simply held the captor-turned-captive out and nonchalantly dropped him off the left side of the roof. The reduced speed prevented him from being seriously hurt, but he still rolled head over heels on the sidewalk hard enough to be knocked out of commission. As the limousine picked up speed again, one of the three police cars from the start of the whole scenario hung back to apprehend him, while the two from the opposite direction joined those remaining in continuing the chase.

Saiyaman wasn't quite finished with his work, however. Peering again down into the back seat, he addressed the frazzled hostage.

"Almost done!"

Stepping back, he once again grasped the peeled-up section of roof and continued pulling it along the same path as before, all the way up the length of the limo until he was standing on the hood. He knelt down again, just long enough to look into the driver's seat and crack a smile at the visibly unarmed carjacker. He then pulled the roof down, as easily as folding paper, and used it to completely cover the front windshield.

Needless to say, this quite dramatically affected the already-panicking driver's ability to control the limo. He began to weave back and forth, struggling to maintain control while fruitlessly attempting to peer through any small gap in the metal roofing he could.

After a few moments, he ultimately lost control - but only because the Great Saiyaman had claimed it. Perching himself on the front bumper, the fantastic superhero clutched the entire front end of the vehicle and took flight. The whole thing doubtlessly weighed several tons, but it may as well have been a fluffy pillow to him as he floated up into the air with it in his mighty grip. Both the driver and the remaining passenger were none too pleased about this.

They were even less pleased with what Saiyaman did next. He flipped it upside-down.

Both the driver and his well-to-do hostage tumbled out of the roofless vehicle, greeted by the ever-growing sight of a city street below them. Their gravity-driven peril only lasted a second, however, as Saiyaman was suddenly right next to them again, having let the mangled vehicle crash down onto an abandoned lot. The hostage was the first to be saved, deftly and swiftly tucked under the hero's muscular arm. The criminal was handled a bit more roughly; Saiyaman caught him in mid-air by the front of his shirt, just like with his companion before. As he began to float to the ground, Saiyaman held the perpetrator up to his own level, cracked another smile, and then leaned forward to tap him on the head with his helmet. The "tap" held more than enough strength to render the man unconscious and ripe for arrest by the approaching police.

He touched down on the sidewalk, right beside the abandoned lot, and proceeded to place both men he carried onto solid ground. The unconscious crook he let simply drop from waist-level, but he carefully placed the gentlemen hostage's feet on the pavement and allowed him to stand up by himself. By then, the police cars had parked and an array of officers climbed out of them to assess the situation. Saiyaman was more than willing to fill them in.

"Never fear! The situation is resolved!" He proclaimed his victory while holding one hand straight upwards, pointing to the sky with a 'V' for 'Victory.' "For so long as there are evildoers in this world, and so long as the innocent cry out for justice, I will be-"

"You imbecile!"

Saiyaman was taken aback by the sudden hostile outburst… from the man whom he'd just saved. The 'gentleman' was suddenly up in the hero's face and obviously quite agitated.

"Who do you think you are?" he demanded, prodding the bewildered masked figure's chest accusingly. "That was my new personal limo! It's the latest model on the market, with all the most expensive amenities!" He folded his arms and glared sternly. "You'd better be prepared to pay for these damages!"

Saiyaman didn't quite know how to respond. "But… But I just-"

"You just what? I'll tell you what! You just got yourself into a whole lot of debt, that's what!" He pointed a thumb at himself. "Do you have any idea who I am?"

"Please, Mr. Money," one of the police officers tried stepping in. "We'll get this all sorted out if you'll just-"

"No, I don't think so," he continued to object. "I'm going to make sure this miscreant gets what he so rightfully d-"

"Egad!" Saiyaman suddenly exclaimed, pointing a finger behind his harasser. "Another catastrophe is afoot! I'm needed!"

"Huh?" The spoiled man fell for the bluff and turned around to look. "What are you going on about no-yeeek!"

The classic 'look-behind-you' trick worked like a charm. By the time the man and the police officers had regained their footing from his take-off, Saiyaman was long gone, out of earshot of any complaints and off to attend to other heroics. Probably.

* * *

A few moments later, the green-clad hero perched atop the very top bank of one of the city's many mushroom-shaped skyscrapers. Grateful that he'd escaped that last particular escapade, and hopeful that nothing major would come of it, he finally allowed himself to relax for the first time in hours. After taking a quick survey with both his eyes and his Ki to make sure there was nobody around paying any particular attention, he reached up to unfasten the chin strap which secured his helmet. Once it was loose, he gently lifted the entire fixture up and off his head, and he breathed a sigh of relief as the cool, early-evening breeze washed over his features.

"Phew."

As Son Gohan gazed down at what had effectively been his own face for the better part of the day, he couldn't feel more pleasantly nostalgic. With the blossoming summer season reducing his university work to a barely-worthwhile minimum, and with a certain 14-year-old someone and her grandfather making the household considerably less hectic, he'd actually found himself bored for the first time in months. As was an old habit, he decided to simply sort and clean some old things in the attic. When going through a box of his odds and ends from back when he and Videl had moved away from Mount Paozu, he'd come across a certain watch… a certain special watch.

Within seconds, Gohan was wearing the Great Saiyaman costume again, happily surprised that it still fit him so well after all these years since high school. At first, he'd been content to simply admire his flashy getup in the mirror and revel in the fact that nobody else was home while he attempted to see how many of his old poses he could still pull off. But then, he began gazing out the window of his second-floor bedroom, where off in the distance beyond his resident suburbia, the skyline of Satan City beckoned him. One thing led to another, and now here he was, a full half-day of super-heroics later.

Gohan continued gazing at his own reflection in the visor of the helmet, and it almost seemed like the Great Saiyaman was a separate entity from his own; an old friend with whom he'd reconnected and spent the day catching up. As Gohan mused over everything that had happened to him – he'd been ridiculed, insulted, assaulted by wildlife, depreciated, vomited on, and so forth – the hero inside the helmet seemed to look back at him and ask, "Well? Was it worth it?"

Gohan smiled.

"Totally."


	15. Love At First Fight

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED **

_By Sean Gallagher (Kaboom Krusader)_

Chapter Fifteen – _"Love at First Fight"_

Out in the deep, dark reaches of space, within the armored bowels of a small and solitary ship, a sole figure dripped with sweat as he pushed his own body to its limits.

It had been a long time since he'd trained under such high gravity, and so these conditions felt especially harsh on him. Using Super Saiyan would allow him to alleviate most of the effects and would certainly make things easier. But then, it wouldn't really be training if it wasn't a challenge, would it? Instead, he pressed on, determined to make the best of the facilities and his own downtime.

He crouched down and pushed himself up into the air, already an admirable feat by itself when one currently weighs over a hundred times more than usual. It was even more impressive when he focused and began flying. Even to float aimlessly in the air required some effort and ki expenditure, which added to the overall difficulty. He opted to simply circle around near the ceiling as he threw punches and kicks at a steady pace, getting his heart rate up and feeling the burn from the intense workout.

After a few minutes of this, he needed a breather. He allowed himself to float downwards, and with a _**thud**_ he touched down on the tiled floor a little harder than he'd intended. He resisted the urge to sit down, partially from being apprehensive about a similarly forceful landing on his rear, and opted to instead do stretching exercises while catching his breath. This was, in fact, the fourth time he'd gone through this sequence in the past half-hour, and so absorbed was he in this routine that he didn't notice he was being observed.

"Yo, Trunks."

He turned his head around, taking a glance at the newly opened heavy portal to the rest of the ship and its notably more comfortable environment. Standing just outside was Goku, who looked over him and the room curiously.

"Hi, Goku," Trunks replied. "I'm just about finished."

"Well don't let me slow y' down," Goku stepped casually into the room while he spoke. There was a barely-audible _beep_ from the doorway the instant he passed through it, as the power measurement scanners took a quick reading of him. The gravity remained unchanged, however, as Goku trotted across the room to glance at the gravity controls.

"150 Gs, huh?" He commented, turning back around to Trunks. "Not bad."

"Um, yeah," Trunks replied, a bit discouraged at how effortlessly Goku could withstand something that was so inhibiting to himself. "This is my dad's 'easy' level, but it's more or less my upper limit for now."

"Hey, you'll get up there soon enough," Goku encouraged him. "Pan's got a pretty good handle on 80 Gs now from our training, though. If you ain't careful, she'll catch up to you really quick." He then cocked his head to the side as he suddenly became inquisitive. "Though, y'know," he mused, "I remember you sayin' a little after we left that you didn't expect to be usin' the Gravity Room much. But lately I'm seeing you in here almost as often as Pan an' I."

"Well, how should I say it?" Trunks said, almost a little embarrassed. "I've been thinking about what happened on Imegga…"

"Ah," Goku could almost read his mind. "I think I know where this is goin'."

Trunks nodded. "It's funny," he explained. "Even though I don't even come close to folks like you, or my dad, or Gohan, how many people could there be, even across the whole universe, who can compare to a Super Saiyan like me? Shoot, even _without_ Super Saiyan I've got to be stronger than 99.9999% of everyone else out there, you know?"

"That's a lot of nines."

"But when I tried fighting Redgic back there, and got my ass handed to me," Trunks lamented. "I realized how complacent I've gotten. I guess no matter how good you are, there's always someone out there who's better, right?"

Goku smiled warmly. "There sure is."

"So, I don't expect to catch up to you anytime soon," Trunks joked. "But I figure I should pick up the pace with my own training, even if just a little. It could actually matter someday."

"I wouldn't be surprised," Goku said. Then, his face suddenly perked up. "Oh, I almost forgot the reason I came t' get you in the first place. Pan's callin' us for a meeting."

Trunks raised an eyebrow in bemusement. "Is she, now?"

Fifteen minutes later, the entire four-man crew was gathered together in the open main room of the ship's upper deck. It would have been sooner, but upon reporting in to Pan, Trunks was rather brusquely informed that he stunk to high heaven of sweat from his training, and he was ordered to shower with all haste so that the meeting could proceed without risk of fainting or nausea. Trunks accomplished this handily, and now he, Goku, and even Gill were all seated comfortably within one side of the circular couch in the floor. Pan stood tall, up on the floor itself, not only in an adorable attempt to seem tall and authoritative, but also because it honestly presented the best vantage point for her to address them.

"Gentlemen, robot," she started off, speaking in a very calm and matter-of-fact tone. "We have a serious crisis on our hands. One we can no longer ignore."

"I already said," Goku protested, "I promise I won't try t' do the laundry anymore."

"No, Grandpa, that's not it," Pan shushed him, then continued. "As you all know, we launched from Earth with a way, WAY generous supply of food, thanks to all the Capsule freezers Mrs. Bulma packed for us."

"I wouldn't know," Goku sulked, laying his chin down on the table. "I ain't allowed to touch any of it anyways."

"However," Pan kept going. "In spite of this, during the past month-and-a-half since we've been in space, I think we've all come to realize the same horrible truth." She folded her arms and made the dramatic announcement. "None of us actually know how to cook."

"That's right," Trunks said. "I've never really had to. We've got staff back at home for that."

"And I honestly have no idea how I passed Home Ec last year at school," Pan noted. "I think my mom had dirt on the teacher. But still," she protested, "something has to change. We can't keep having nothing for dinner but microwaved corn dogs and instant noodles!"

"_Gigigigigi_," Gill piped up. "No data pertinent to humanoid nutrition."

"Whaddya mean?" Goku suddenly put in. "I know how to cook."

All three other parties turned to look at him, dumbfounded.

"You do?" Pan inquired. "But don't Grandma or Oob do all the cooking for you?"

"Hey, they weren't always around, y'know," Goku defended himself. "Back when I was little the first time an' living on my own, way back before I even met Bulma, I had t' fend for myself. That included cookin' my own food, too."

"Really?" This was new to Trunks as well.

"Sure, it's easier n' it looks," Goku explained. "All you gotta do is just go out an' find something big and meaty. Like a fish, or a bear, or wolf, or something like that. Then once you kill it you just skin it, jab a stick through it, and roast it over a fire 'til it's cooked all the way through. Nothin' to it!"

Gill did his best to process this bizarre new data, while Pan and Trunks simply stared.

"Though, Chi-Chi really knows how to use spices an' stuff, so I guess that's not as good, huh?"

"… Okay, Grandpa, another new rule," Pan laid down the law. "You're not allowed to do our laundry OR cook anything for us."

"Well, fine then," Goku snipped back. "But if I'm not gonna do it, then one of you guys'll have to learn how, right?"

"Don't look at me," Trunks said. "I've got enough to do around here taking care of the ship."

"Wait a sec." Pan wore an expression of shock as she realized the hole into which she'd just dug herself. "Does this mean it'll have to be…"

Trunks smiled and raised an arm. "All in favor of appointing Pan as official ship's cook?"

"Aye!" Goku enthusiastically agreed.

"_GIGIGIGIGIGI!_" Gill suddenly started ranting and raving. "Dragon Ball detected!"

"So Pan," Goku teased. "When's lunch?"

"Fine, if that's how it is," Pan sighed in defeat. "I have helped out Grandma and my mom here and there before, so I guess I'll start to-"

"Hold on a second," Trunks interrupted her. "I think we just missed something important."

"Dragon Ball detected! Dragon Ball detected!" Gill continued to chant as Trunks reached over to pick up and examine him, then cracked a wide grin.

"Looks like it worked!"

Goku was, naturally, curious. "What did?"

"Well, seeing as how Gill and our Dragon Radar are now one and the same," Trunks explained, "I tried setting up a link between him and the ship's long-distance radar, as well. This way, if a Dragon Ball appears, Gill can alert us no matter where we are, on or off the ship."

"So if it's working," Pan connected the dots, "you mean he just found one now?"

"That's right," Trunks beamed, getting up to follow Goku, already en-route towards the cockpit to take a closer look. In a matter of seconds, all four of them were within the small chamber, with Trunks at his pilot's seat and the others crowded around him.

"There it is," Trunks beamed as he pointed it out on the radar screen. The display's layout was different now, compared to last time with Planet Imegga. The graphics and numbers indicated a much farther and wider scanning radius, and the signal from the Dragon Ball was right at the very edge, having just come into range.

"Cool!" Goku's eyes darted back and forth as he tried to interpret the readout. "It looks like it's still far away, right? How long'll it take us to get there?"

"If we speed up a bit, then it would take roughly…" Trunks mulled it over. "Half a day, I think. More than enough time to have some lunch, and then for me to prep for landing while you guys clean up the ship a bit."

Lunch did not go well.

Despite warnings and urging to just follow a recipe for something simpler, Pan insisted on trying to recreate the delectable fish and vegetables over rice stir-fry which Chi-Chi would often prepare. What inevitably made things even worse was that she attempted to do so without any sort of recipe or reference, and her decision process for what spices, sauces, and seasonings to use could be best described as "willy-nilly." The results were mixed, to put it nicely.

Five hours, two small fires extinguished by Gill, three quick prayers to Dende, and countless frantic trips to the bathroom later, the trio of adventurers felt somewhat _less_ adventurous than usual. Once they finally felt well enough to move again, they quickly made preparations for their imminent landing. Only Goku had the physical strength required to scrub away the bottom layer of "food" from the supposedly non-stick cooking pans, while the remains of what had not fused with the cookware was ejected from an airlock for health and safety purposes. In fact, as they entered the solar system containing the Dragon Ball, they adjusted their course a bit just to make sure that the food could be shot directly towards one of its two suns. While this disaster relief took place, Trunks and Gill worked on distributing power and reinforcing the ship, Trunks intending, by all means necessary, to make sure their landing on this world was a smooth one.

"Hey, you guys!" He finally called. "Get in here, we're making our approach!" Within a minute the two children had crammed their way back into the cockpit and strapped themselves in, watching intently as their target planet steadily came into view. All three organics gazed upon it and were immediately awestruck.

Another ten minutes later, having touched down without a hitch and exited the ship, all three organics were _still_ every bit as awestruck. They hadn't thought it possible, but this world was even more beautiful up close than it was from high orbit. The expansive oceans they'd seen covering the overwhelming majority of its surface stretched out as far as the eye could see. Though they'd spotted nothing quite large enough on its own to be labeled as a continent, it was peppered with numerous archipelagos and stray islands of various sizes. The island they'd landed on was small, only a few kilometers away from the where the Dragon Ball's signal emanated. A warm, early afternoon breeze gently wafted over the area, causing petite waves to ripple against the sandy beach and the assorted trees atop its rocky inland to rustle back and forth. There was nary a cloud to be seen, with that particular part of the scenery primarily occupied by the planet's single, majestic ring, which arced its way across the entire sky.

"Wow!" Goku was the first to break out of his stupor and finally speak. "Y'think we could just move everyone here an' let Earth blow up?"

"Don't be stupid, Grandpa," Pan characteristically scolded him. "Although I've gotta admit, I wouldn't mind living here one bit..."

"Well, let's hope it doesn't become necessary, but we'll keep an open mind if things don't go well." Trunks put in. "But living here might not be as pleasant as you'd think."

"Really?" Pan somewhat sarcastically expressed her disbelief as she once again observed the breathtaking landscape around her. "What, do the trees eat people?"

"Gigigigi," Gill missed the sarcasm, as robots are often wont to do, and took Pan's fears with the utmost seriousness as he ran some sort of bio-scan on the trees for her. "No structural or chemical evidence of carnivorous behavior within observable local flora!"

"Hardly," Trunks continued. "But as we were preparing to land, I checked up on the planetary data my dad put together and found out about this planet. It's called-"

"Wait, what?" This was news to Goku. "Vegeta did that for us?"

"Ah, yeah, he did," Trunks said. "Since he was such a star-crossed voyager back in his youth, he apparently has a lot of knowledge about the major inhabited planets out here. He wrote up a list about some of them here in our North Galaxy. Coordinates, basic info about the planet or its population, and things like that."

Goku smiled. "And that guy still acts like he doesn't care about Earth."

"Anyway, this place is called Koum," Trunks continued. "While the planet itself is beautiful, the population might not be so welcoming. They're apparently a pretty strong race, like the Saiyans were, and just like the old Saiyans, they worked for Freeza all those years back, too."

"So there's a good chance they won't be friendly, huh?" Pan figured.

"Maybe, maybe not. That's not something you can tell from the sky, after all. Although, the nearby city where the Dragon Ball's signal is coming from sure as hell looks pretty heavily fortified. I think I saw what looks like weaponry batteries, too." Trunks thumbed behind him. "That's why I'm going to leave the ship intact and on standby, instead of powering it down completely and changing it to a capsule," he explained. "If things get ugly, we may have to take the Dragon Ball by force and make a quick getaway."

"Well," Pan concluded, "here's hoping we're wrong."

* * *

They were indeed very wrong. They traversed the short distance of ocean from the ship and meekly approached the aforementioned island-set city with all caution. The most obvious entrance was set just off of a large beach-rimmed lagoon set within the Southeast corner of the island, and the area was generously speckled with a number of natives. But rather than being met with distrust and high security like they expected, it felt as though the entire population collectively reached out and gave them a big, welcoming hug.

The natives were every bit as warm in appearance as the landscape in which they lived. They were humanoid and looked structurally identical to humans, save for their elongated, oval-shaped ears. They all had tan skin of various shades and hues, upon which they shared similar patterns of large, freckle-like spots, which ran from the tops of their hands and feet, up the lengths of their limbs, up the sides of their torsos and necks, and finally along the hairlines on their faces. This unique skin, along with their hair, which was light enough to reflect excess sunlight, no doubt made them well-suited to their planet's bright and tropical climate.

Despite Goku and company's apprehensions, the natives all seemed extraordinarily friendly. As the visitors left the city's main entrance area and moseyed their way further in, they found themselves continuously assaulted with all sorts of cordial greetings. They were bombarded with everything from a simple, kind smile here and there, to a group-hug by a small swarm of passing children, and even, much to Goku's delight, to food.

"Oh man," he exclaimed as they walked. "After lunch, I thought I'd never eat again, but this..." He held up the sizable kabob which he'd been gifted, choosing to eat it relatively slowly to savor the taste, rather than just shove it down his gullet like he usually did. "Whatever critter got cooked up to make this, he's delicious. It tastes like candy and it's meltin' in my mouth..."

"So much for expecting a rough welcome," Pan said. "So far, this place is everything Imegga wishes it was. It's amazing."

"It sure looks like things have changed since my dad was last acquainted with this place," Trunks agreed, returning a friendly wave to a random elderly native woman who passed by them.

"Well, there's at least one part he got right," Goku commented. "I can feel their ki, and these people are pretty strong compared t' most others." He looked over his shoulder as they walked. "I think that ol' lady could beat those two weak guys we fought on Imegga pretty easily." He then looked and pointed upwards. "Some folks are even flyin' around, too."

"Then as long as we know it's not a social taboo," Trunks said, "why don't we get a better view of things while we move?"

Trunks took hold of Gill as the three Saiyans all took to the air and gently soared over the cliffs and rooftops in the direction of the Dragon Ball's signal. As they did, they were able to get a better feel for the nature and structure of this island.

The city itself, in fact, encompassed two adjacent islands, one noticeably larger than the other, and it was just as welcoming in its atmosphere as its people. For one, the weapons systems Trunks had seen from orbit had evidently long ago been abandoned and dismantled, and the remaining shells were being used for all kinds of other purposes. The bulk of the city was on the larger main island, and its construction was the very definition of "cozy." The buildings were all quite simple in structure and appearance, often densely packed together; yet, when one looked close, it became easy to tell that they were masterfully and scientifically built for maximum strength and living space. Aside from the sandy beaches surrounding it, one would be hard-pressed to find any level ground on the entire island, but the habitats were beautifully adjusted to the rocky, multi-tiered surface. A maze-like network of small, step-laden alleys weaved their way around and between people's homes within the more crowded neighborhoods. But at the same time, there were plenty of open spaces serving as markets, public dining areas, and performance centers. All in all, the city's appearance seemed to reflect an outlook on life that focused on peace and relaxation.

From a distance, however, things didn't look the same on the smaller island. It was mostly forest and contained relatively few structures compared to the larger one, but what it did have was starkly different. The most prominent and eye-catching feature was a large, cylindrical structure, which bulged somewhat at the top. It seemed built like a fortress and, given the planet's supposedly militaristic history, it probably was one in the past. It was most immediately surrounded by a large, thick wall, resembling an egg shell neatly sliced in half, which was in turn surrounded by smaller cylindrical buildings. This isle was connected to the main one by a majestic, arched stone bridge which, judging from similar towering stones jutting from the oceans, may have once been part of a natural rocky isthmus uniting the two islands. Despite the locales of the second island being rather unwelcoming in appearance, the warm and embracing constructs of the city seemed to expand onto the bridge, and a large number of natives were happily crossing it in both directions.

From the looks of it, the now much more relaxed crew of Earthlings would be crossing it as well. They touched down on the near side, looking across the gap to the more imposing edifices in the distance. Trunks held Gill as he observed the readout on the little robot's Dragon Radar. He took note of the signal distance and announced his confirmation.

"No doubt about it," he said. "The Dragon Ball's definitely in the largest building."

"So what do we do?" Goku asked. "Just walk in there and get it?"

"I guess it depends on where 'there' actually is." Trunks pondered and began looking around. "Let's find someone who looks informed and ask about-"

But Goku was one step ahead of him, already heading straight towards a random Koumian to pose their question. It was a teenage boy, seemingly not much older than Pan. He wore clothes that looked of higher quality than most, but were still obviously very casual, consisting of a baggy shirt and knee-length pants held together with a silky-looking sash. What silver hair was loose hung down over his forehead or was tied in the back in a short ponytail. It whipped back and forth as he turned his gaze, appearing as though he was on the lookout for something or someone. He was too distracted to even notice Goku until the diminutive alien was right next to him, tugging gently on his shirt sleeve for attention.

"Hmm?" The young man, now alerted to their presence, quickly looked them all over. He made no effort to hide his lingering focus on Pan, who had been equally attentive to him until he noticed, and he finally displayed a smile at the group when she hastily averted her eyes.

"Oh, hello there, off-worlders," he greeted them just as pleasantly as everyone else thus far.

"Hey," Goku returned it somewhat less eloquently as he pointed. "Can you tell us what that big building is over there?"

He followed Goku's indication and smiled again. "Why, that's the royal palace."

"Go figure," Pan muttered. "Once again, it's already snatched up by the planet's bigwigs."

The young man became puzzled. "What's the matter?" he asked. "It sounds like you need something in there?"

"You could say that," Goku piped up again. "Whole reason we landed on this planet."

"Well, if it's that important," the young native continued, "you should find an elder man in there named Zatar. He's the chief adviser. He should be able to take care of things for you." He gave a kind wave goodbye as he continued walking along his prior path. "Good luck!"

"Thanks for the help!" Goku waved back enthusiastically. Without skipping a beat, he took off, and Trunks and Pan were prompted to follow as he ran towards the edge of the hill from which the arched bridge extended. He jumped off and led the other two in gliding happily through the air, the three of them garnering impressed shouts from some of the natives by making a few fancy twists around the bridge itself.

Once beyond the bridge, they continued soaring for a short while, gently ascending at treetop level along the rocky slope of the island before touching down at its peak. Before them, they finally beheld the royal palace up close. Several old, worn stone paths led in different directions, presumably to the smaller towers scattered on the island's peak around the palace. The oval wall surrounding the palace tower itself was thicker than it seemed from a distance, with several doors leading within it and visible walkways all along its top ridge. The wide entrance at its middle directly in front of Goku and company looked as though it had been closed off with massive doors at one point, but the settled ground and painted-over mechanisms where hinges once lay gave away that this was long in the past. The palace evidently held a much more welcoming open-door policy these days, as was obvious from the scattered groups of citizens walking in and out of the big open doors.

Our brave heroes followed suit, casually strolling past the main gate and into the courtyard within the walls. It looked as though the area had been re-dedicated as a small city park of some sort, as it was filled with a denser amount of trees than outside, with paths weaving in and out around them, and a variety of tables, benches, and chairs left around for people to freely use at their leisure. As tempting and relaxing as it seemed, the four visitors stayed on the central path, finally walking in to the palace itself.

Having come in from the bright and sunny outside, it took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the relatively dark interior. However, they immediately gathered how spacious and hospitable the area was. The wide open main floor was comprised of smoothed and masterfully laid stones, atop which were a wide array of tables, benches, couches, and other decorative furniture, just like outside.

On the far end of the ground floor, across from the entrance, a large, semi-circular stone platform took up roughly a quarter of the area, along with matching, wide stone stairways angling up and around to either side of it. The raised area contained more furnishings, but its primary purpose seemed to be the base for an elevator system. Koumian citizens could be seen either riding it or waiting to do so as the Earthlings walked inside and looked around.

Just judging by sight, the entire bottom half of the tower was essentially hollow, and a set of four mighty, segmented stone columns stretched upwards as the only visible method of structural support. But, all this space was certainly not unused. An array of elevated wooden walkways and smaller platforms were constructed at various points around and along the tower's columns and inner walls. They were likewise decked out with their own facilities for leisure and entertainment, and the occasional Koumian here and there could be seen flying to or from them at random.

Though dark compared to the glaring sunlight outside, the interior was actually rather well-lit. All along the walls of the cavernous room were a series of large, circular windows, arranged at heights and locations that suggested they once had some tactical use. But now, they had rustically luxurious platforms built around them, with translucent canopies set up to allow a comfortable amount of natural light to stream in from outside.

The four newcomers found themselves loitering in the middle of the ground floor, simply gazing upwards and around at the whole scene.

"Wow," Goku noted. "It looks just as nice inside as outside."

"Let's not get too caught up in relaxing," Trunks warned, pausing to think for a moment. "...Yet. Working for the Dragon Ball is our first priority." He held Gill, who relaxed and allowed the Dragon Radar readout on his back to be observed. "Looks like it's somewhere above, in the upper floors of the tower."

"Well, let's find this Zatar person so we can figure out what the deal is," Pan said. "Not sure how we're supposed to go about finding or talking to the royal advisor, though."

"Maybe this guy can help us find 'im?" Goku suggested.

Pan and Trunks noticed Goku was looking up, and they followed suit. Comfortably leaning with his arms against the railing, as he looked down at them from the raised elevator platform, was a tall and muscular Koumian man. He seemed to be a member of the military, as evident from the lightly armored, red- and green- patterned outfit he shared with others they'd seen within the city. The slightly more ornate trimming of his shirt and chest piece suggested he might be of higher rank. His short silver hair was swept back, save for a bang or two hanging over his forehead, and his powerful chin was adorned with both a close, narrow beard and a smile as he was discovered by the Earthlings.

"Hello there," he spoke firmly yet cheerfully. He casually vaulted over the railing to land down on their level. He walked a few steps over and extended a hand to Trunks. "Welcome to Planet Koum. My name's Orris, Captain of the Royal Guard."

"Trunks, Pan, and Son Goku," Trunks accepted the handshake and nodded to introduce each of them.

"An' this is Gill!" Goku appended, now holding up the chattering little robot for their host to see.

"We're from Earth, another planet here in the North Galaxy," Trunks continued. "I have to say, we were a bit worried about coming here. We heard this planet used to be pretty, uh… militaristic."

"Yes, but that was a long time ago," Orris said. "Today, the strength of our Royal Guard is around for what small amount of police work there is to do, and to repel the occasional hostile off-worlders. Even I do little more than greet guests like you nowadays."

"But you're still pretty strong, aren't you? I can tell," Goku mentioned, having been scoping out Orris's ki on the sly.

"Strong enough to do my job," Orris humbly admitted. "Enough about me, though; I'm sure you three are nothing ordinary, either. I saw your skilled aerial approach from one of the upper floors and came down to greet you. But after I watched you for a minute, it seems as though you're looking for something."

"That's right," Trunks said. "We're tracking something from Earth, and it apparently ended up in the palace here somehow."

"It's a small glass sphere with stars inside it." Pan finally found an opportunity to participate in the conversation. "It's pretty important."

"We traced it t' right here in your palace," Goku lastly proclaimed, holding up the protesting Gill for Orris to see the radar readout. "It looks like it's somewhere upstairs."

"Hmm," Orris rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "That sounds familiar. I think I remember Regano getting his hands on something like that a few weeks ago." He noticed their puzzlement at the name-drop and smiled again. "Oh, Regano is our prince. He's _kind of_ the boss around here."

"Called it," Pan lamented. "So if we want it back, we're going to have to majorly suck up to him, won't we?"

"I wouldn't worry too much, young lady," Orris cheerfully responded, for some reason focusing on Pan in particular. "Something tells me the prince will be generous about it." With that, he began to hover upwards and motioned for them to follow. "Come with me, and we'll see what we can do."

They stuck close to him and followed him into the air as requested, floating up and up through the cavernous interior of the tower, attracting more friendly attention from relaxing natives on various levels until gently coming to rest on the uppermost platform. This area was a somewhat smaller, suspended version of the ground floor platform, and it seemed to serve primarily as an exit area from the elevator. At its forefront section, opposite the wall, was a wide staircase which led up into the ceiling and the higher floors beyond. Orris casually began walking up the stairs, waving for them to continue with him. "Up we go!"

Up they indeed went, emerging at the stairs' summit into a long and spacious hallway, lined with roughly a half-dozen ornate doors. The steady flow of pedestrian traffic carried on into this section as well, intermixed with the occasional, neatly-dressed civil servant taking care of some minor business or other. Orris led the Earthling group down the hall's entire length, where they found themselves at the bottom of another stairway. This one twisted upwards in a spiral, its naturally-lit chamber encompassing two more floors, and exited through a portal in the roof from which more sunlight could be seen shining through. Rather than climb this stairway on foot, Orris once again took flight through its center. The Earthlings followed suit, and they all touched back down in time to step up through the portal and onto the tower's top floor.

They were immediately greeted again by the natural sunlight and cool breeze from outside. The top floor of the palace was wide, spacious, and open, and the walls of the dome they'd seen from outside were more a series of wide, reinforced archways than actual walls, surrounded by a spacious balcony which wrapped around the entire structure. The four stone columns from the bottom half of the tower extended through the floor and apparently provided most of the structural integrity for the ceiling, where they ended. Said ceiling was covered roughly half by stone; the other half consisted of a pattern of circular portals of semi-translucent glass, which allowed the twin suns to cast a bright and welcoming glow throughout the dome's interior.

A wide walkway led from the stairway to the middle of the room where, between the four pillars, a large, currently unoccupied throne sat on a small raised platform. Otherwise, the area seemed a more comfortable version of the larger chamber three floors below. The area was more lavishly furnished, with an assortment of nice seats and benches, rugs laid out in high-traffic areas on the floor, and the pillars and walls adorned with tapestries and artwork.

Late afternoon apparently wasn't prime business hours, as the room was almost devoid of people save for a few civilians on the furniture or at the balcony. One particular person stood out as Orris led the Earthlings to him. He was a tall, elderly man, his head bald save for a rim of dulled white hair circling around his temples and connecting to an impressive beard. His frail-looking frame was draped with a loosely-fitting tunic which displayed the same color scheme as the few officials they'd seen, but it was much more regal and intricate in its design, and a curious and intricate crystal amulet was draped around his neck. He was chatting sternly with one such official, whom he subtly dismissed as he noticed Orris approaching with guests in tow.

"Orris," he bluntly acknowledged his junior, then looked over the Earthlings. "And who have you brought with you?"

"Folks," Orris addressed them in turn, "this is Zatar, the head advisor. He more-or-less runs this place most of the time."

"You give me too much credit," said Zatar, though his tone was too neutral to tell if he was joking or not. "I only serve to support the prince."

"These people are from a nearby planet named Earth," Orris continued. "They've come here looking for something important, called a Dragon Ball."

"It's small, about this big, an' made of glass," Goku started to describe the item in full. "There's seven of 'em, and if you get them all together, you can call this big dragon that can grant you any wish."

Both of their hosts were taken aback. Orris' reaction was more pronounced, his eyes widening as he uttered a single "Wow," while Zatar simply raised an eyebrow in intrigue. Goku took notice.

"Unfortunately, there's some pretty severe side effects to using them," Trunks explained. "These things put our entire planet in peril with the extreme amount of energy they used before scattering around to the different planets. Unless we get them all back quickly, Earth will be destroyed."

As the three visitors went on to further explain the circumstances and premise of their mission, Orris and Zatar both listened with patience and interest.

"That's… quite a predicament indeed," Zatar responded when they finished. "Certainly, if what you're saying is true, and one of these Dragon Balls is here on Koum, then we'll do all we can to assist you in locating and retrieving it."

"It may be pretty easy, actually," Orris informed his elder. "Again, I seem to recall Regano coming into possession of something like that a few weeks back." He smiled. "I didn't get a good look at it, but I'm sure it fit the description our friends here have provided. Is the prince… available?"

Zatar sighed. "I'm afraid not."

"Alright, then," Orris turned back to the Earthlings. "I'm sorry to have to turn you away like this, but even though I'm sure you could locate it quickly with that tracking device of yours, it is ultimately up to the prince whether or not we can give you the artifact."

"You'll have to come back in the morning," Zatar continued. "The prince has his public hearing hours then, and you'll be able to plead your case to him."

"Aw, shoot," Goku smiled as he let loose more sarcasm than was normal for him. "Y' mean we'll have to spend a whole night on this warm n' beautiful planet?"

"The horror," Pan followed up.

"Feel free to enjoy the city and countryside to your hearts' content," Orris assured them. "As serious as your mission may be, there's no reason not to make yourselves comfortable."

"You'll forgive us if we leave you to let yourselves out," Zatar said. "I'm sure you can manage to make your way back through the city on your own."

They did. Three hours later, the group of four was finally almost back to the ship. After taking their time enjoying the view, both within and from the outside of the throne room level of the tower, they'd popped through the lower section again. They chose to walk across the bridge back to the main island instead of flying, taking in the sights of the stalls, shops, and even homes situated along it. As they backtracked through the city, they were delighted to stumble upon a large party with barbeque and music taking place in one of the city squares. Food was eaten, much conversation and laughter took place, more food was eaten, Gill was manhandled, and a beautiful cultural exchange between Earth and Koum occurred when Goku introduced the natives to the concept of a conga line - insisting, of course, that he remain in the front so he could continue to eat.

Now, quite some time later, the three well-fed Saiyans and their overloaded little robot were steadily coursing through the air, on their final approach to the small island where their ship was parked. When it came into view, they were surprised to find that there was considerably less beach than when they'd left.

"Uh, guys," Goku observed the obvious, "I think the tide came in."

Indeed, it had. Though its wondrous rings stole the astronomical spotlight, Planet Koum also boasted one small moon, not unlike Earth's. In the group's time away, it had swooped in under their noses to take its place up in the deep orange, late afternoon sky, and it did its job handily. The water level had risen up to submerge the lower half of the ship's landing legs, as well as most of the cone of the main rocket booster between them.

Trunks breathed a sigh of relief once he was sure that nothing important was flooded, while Goku and Pan continued to look on.

"Well," Pan inquired, "what are we gonna do about this?"

"I've got an idea," Goku said, jumping up to the top of the ship. There, he proceeded to quickly strip naked.

"Grandpa!" Pan exclaimed, her face turning bright red. "What are you doing?"

"Huh?" Goku looked down, genuinely confused. "I'm goin' for a swim."

"Yeah, but," she replied vehemently, "put on a bathing suit or something!"

"Aw, what's the big deal?" Goku started to stretch a bit, the motions adding further to his teenage granddaughter's discomfort along with his next words. "We took baths together all the time when you were little."

"That… that was different!"

Pan's protests were futile, as Goku ignored her and jumped butt-first off the ship into the water.

"Wahoo!"

He splashed down and started to paddle around like a child, laughing as he kicked up more water than was really necessary. "Come on, guys!"

* * *

Nearly an hour later, things were winding down. Pan and Trunks had ultimately decided to swim too, though Pan only did so under the condition that Goku put SOMETHING on the lower half of his body. Now, it was finally starting to get dark as the second of Planet Koum's twin suns set, the world's extra-long day nearing its end.

The three had made use of what little sunlight was left in conjunction with the warm breeze to dry off, but once the former vanished and the latter turned on them, two of them decided to head inside for the night. The third, however, decided to keep warm a different way.

"Normally I'd stay out and train with you, Pan," Goku said, remaining outside to chat with her for a moment more. "But you see that?" He pointed straight upwards, where the planet's rings now dazzled brightly in the early night sky. "I'm gonna go claim the best sleeping spot in the dome. Besides," he concluded, "if you're gonna work on _that_, you might be better off without me distracting you anyway."

"Thanks, Grandpa. It's fine," Pan replied, giving a small wave as he floated up to the ship's entrance. "I won't be out here too long anyway."

Pan took her time, stretching and then doing some push-ups and sit-ups to warm up - only a hundred each to get going, since it was just some quick practice before bed. She decided to make creative use of the high tide by hovering a few feet over the water, practicing her ki control by being careful not to disturb it while she threw punches and kicks. Once she was satisfied, she landed on the beach again, finally getting to the important part of her training.

She sat down cross-legged on the sand, closed her eyes, and began to meditate. This was a key aspect of her current training with Goku, which focused on - even required - gaining absolutely flawless control of her own power. It was an aspect of her training she usually had some trouble with. Oh, sure, she was capable of restraining and masking herself however she needed to, as she, Goku, and Trunks had all done today throughout their visit to the city. But such an extreme level of precision in actually using her ki was something she was relatively unpracticed in, and she had to get better at it quickly if she was going to master what Goku was trying to teach her.

She focused inward on her body's ki, letting her awareness of everything else around her blend together into a passive, blended hum. She was simultaneously aware and ignorant of the sensations and presences around her, both far and near. She could feel and hear the gentle, cooling breeze as it nudged at the water and plants. She could smell the saltiness of the ocean carried on that wind as it mixed with the tangy jungle scent of the island's plant life. She could feel the "large" ki of Goku and Trunks in the ship, along with the smaller ki of animals keeping their distance within the trees, grasses, and water.

She could also easily feel the ki of the person who was steadily making their way directly towards her from the direction of the city.

She did her best to ignore it at first, trying to let it blend in with everything else. But, something about it felt familiar. Her ability to feel ki was just as much one of her senses as anything else, and at the moment it was giving her some wicked déjà vu.

She felt the ki signature quickly cross through the air over the small channel of ocean between the main island and the one their ship rested upon, then slow its pace as it landed close by and began creeping forward. Whoever this mystery visitor was, he seemed intent on keeping himself hidden, apparently having no idea that the group of off-worlders towards whom he prowled could literally sense him coming a mile away.

The unknown person finally stopped, coming to a rest on top of the sloping hillside which separated the island's beach and its forest. He was, no doubt, peering down over the ridge at Pan. Well, she decided, it was time to put an end to this would-be ninja's unannounced observation.

As her ki was quite finely tuned at the moment, it was easy for her to extend her index finger in the direction of her guest and fire a thin beam from it. It shot past the individual, only about a foot above his head, burning through the leaves in the trees behind him and phasing away into the sky.

"Hello out there," Pan called in a mock-cheerful tone. The message was clearly received, as the visitor promptly abandoned his defunct hiding spot and skittered down the hill. Only then, as he approached the ship, did Pan finally get a look at him and realized why his ki felt familiar. It was the boy they'd met earlier that day by the bridge, whom they had asked about the palace. He was still wearing the same outfit, and he walked with confidence, smiling.

"So much for being covert," he said. "Hello. Sorry about that. I just wanted to get a good look at you. Can you blame me?"

"No harm done," Pan replied, wondering briefly what that question was supposed to mean. "With all the attention we were getting in the city, I'm actually a little surprised we haven't had more people flocking out here to visit us."

"Koum doesn't get that many friendly visitors," the boy noted. "When someone does show up under peaceful circumstances, it's considered a happy occasion, and we do everything we can to make them feel welcome." He turned his head to look back at where Pan's ki had whizzed past his head less than a minute ago. "I have to say, though, we might have a hard time with you if you _were_ invaders. That was quite a shot." He looked back at her and smiled again. "So you people are quite strong, just like I heard."

"Well," Pan thought for a moment before deciding there was no harm. "All three of us are at least part Saiyan, so…"

"Saiyan?" He seemed even more intrigued now. "Now that decides it." He took a step back and, still smiling, took a defensive stance. "Please grant me the pleasure of sparring with you."

Pan finally smiled back at him, taking a stance of her own to oblige him. "Okay, why not?"

He suddenly dashed forward, kicking up sand and throwing his left elbow at Pan. She parried it as she jumped to her own left, realizing that he'd chosen that direction on purpose so they could move away from the ship, currently to Pan's right. She took advantage of his courtesy and turned her jump into a quick flight, which he followed, relocating them to a stone's throw from the ship.

Pan landed first, going into a slight crouch as she noticed him approaching with his right leg drawn back for a kick. He threw it and she ducked underneath, twisting her upper body back up to throw a punch at his head. He predicted it in time to tilt himself away, hopping back and recreating the distance between them.

"Wow, charming AND skilled." The boy didn't miss an opportunity for a compliment. Pan wasn't entirely amused.

"You're just asking for a beating with lines like that, you know!"

She upped the ante, taking the offensive this time. She pushed forward and launched a quick volley of punches, which he managed to avoid. But, they served their purpose in distracting him from the knee which Pan drove towards his gut. He put one of his hands out to catch it just in time, but the force of the blow still transferred to his midsection.

He grunted and stumbled backwards as Pan continued to blitz him. She dived towards the ground and pushed off from it with both hands to do a front flip, swinging her right foot down at her opponent for a powerful heel hammer. The move was purposely slow and wide, however, to give him enough time to recover and see it coming. He jumped backwards again just in time for her foot to swing past him and throw up a cloud of sand as it hit the ground. The sand proved to be a suitable veil for Pan to adjust her stance and kick off with that same foot, letting her jump forward and nail him with a right hook to the face.

"Oof!" Now it was the boy's turn for a fancy front flip, though it was to avoid being knocked to the ground rather than to set up an attack of his own. By the time he was standing upright again, Pan had already closed in on him, throwing out a swinging right kick, just like the one he'd made earlier in their fight. Unlike Pan's response before, though, the best he could do against it was hold up a forearm to block, using his other arm to help brace for the impact.

Pan's kick made contact with his arm with a _BOOM_, and the boy was quite affected by it. He skidded backwards a few good feet from the blow before falling rear-first onto the sand. Pan landed in front of him with a proud smile on her face. The short, but sweet, sparring session was over.

"Haha," the boy grunted out an impressed laugh. "Shall we call it a draw?"

Pan chuckled with just a hint of haughtiness in return. "Sure, if you say so."

"I'll be honest, I was pulling my punches a bit, since it was just a friendly spar," he informed her, picking himself up, breathing a bit heavily. "But you're surprisingly strong, even by Koumian standards."

"So was I, and you're not too bad yourself," Pan kindly returned the compliment, deciding not to demean the poor guy by letting on just how _much_ she was holding back.

"Well, this has been quite fun, and it was very nice to meet you," the boy said, dusting himself off. "But it's getting late, and I have a pretty long day ahead of me tomorrow, as I'm sure you do also." He turned partway to the direction he came from, looking back to give Pan a small wave and another smile. "I hope we meet again."

"Uh, sure," Pan waved back as he took off and didn't look back. It was a good thing he didn't, as Pan didn't even realize her gaze was lingering in his direction for the next minute or so until another voice suddenly recaptured her attention.

"Hey Pan, come give us a hand with this!" Trunks and Goku had just re-emerged from the ship, and the former called out to her. She jumped a bit and turned around to see what he wanted. The "nose" hatch of the ship had been opened up, and Goku was starting to unroll a pair of long, heavy hoses from within as Trunks continued to talk.

"I figured as long as we're right on the shore," he explained, "we may as well have the ship cycle out and filter a new water supply during the night."

"Yeah," Goku added as he found himself somehow tangled within both hoses. "The drinking water's startin' to taste kinda tangy." He then addressed Pan more directly. "Hey, we sensed someone else out here. Who was it?"

"Uh," Pan wondered as well, looking back in the direction the mysterious young visitor had headed. "Shoot, I forgot to ask him his name…"

* * *

"So, this Prince Regano guy," Goku asked, arms arced back behind his head, looking around curiously. "Y'think he'll let us have the Dragon Ball easy?"

One of Koum's suns was well into the sky while the other was still rising the next morning. After a hearty breakfast of two whole boxes' worth of frozen waffles, divided quite unevenly between the three of them, the Earthlings and their robot friend (who almost ate the toaster itself after they were done with it) made their way back to the city, eventually returning to the palace's throne room. It seemed smaller now, as it was considerably more crowded than when they'd visited the previous afternoon, with Koumians of all ages, sizes, and dress huddled around for the Prince's formal public hearing hours.

"I couldn't say," Trunks answered, folding his arms as he pondered. "Orris said yesterday that it wouldn't be an issue, but he seemed pretty cryptic about it. Almost on purpose. Don't really know what to expect." He reached down and patted one of his cargo shorts' side pockets, within which he stored a large capsule case. "We may have to barter for it."

"What do we have that they would want?" Pan asked. "This whole planet's society seems so laid-back and simple."

"And not the least bit industrial," Trunks added. "So I doubt they'd have any need at all for the Enlium the Imeggans gave us." He cocked his head to one side in thought. "Maybe a few of the empty refrigerator capsules…?"

Their pondering was interrupted when the surrounding crowd's murmurs suddenly escalated into loud chattering and some barely-subdued cheers. It seemed the prince had finally made his appearance.

Being lost in the throng so far back from the throne, however, the Earthlings couldn't quite see him. Gill floated up above their heads, but didn't seem to have anything useful to report aside from the usual _"gigigigigi"_ and what-not. However, their sense of invisibility didn't last long. A familiar voice rose above the chatter from the vicinity of the throne.

"Attention, please!" It was unmistakably the voice of Zatar, quite booming and powerful for a man of his apparent age. "The prince will hear your concerns in the usual manner in just a few moments!" He declared. "But first, he has chosen to prioritize a certain special matter!"

"The small group from Planet Earth who arrived yesterday!" This time, Orris' voice carried through the room. "Are they here?" In an almost single, fluid motion, the crowds parted to create a clear line of sight between the Earthlings and the throne. In the process, the face of the prince was finally revealed, and it came as quite a shock.

It was the young man whom the group had met in the city and, more importantly, whom Pan had received a visit from the night before.

"Oh come on," Goku commented mostly to himself. "Who didn't see that coming?"

While he was unmistakably the same person, Regano now donned clothing much more appropriate to his lofty position than what he'd been wearing the day before. His gloves and boots were of the same colors as on other state officials, mostly red with a green trim. They matched his sleeveless tunic, which was fitted over a pair of baggy white pants, which in turn matched the short cape draped over his shoulders.

Rather than sitting on his throne, he stood casually in front of it, now looking directly at the two stunned (and one less-stunned) Earthlings. He smiled as he walked off the platform and down the space cleared by the crowds, finally addressing the visitors.

"I'm glad we meet again," he said, then deliberately glanced at Pan, whose mouth was still agape from surprise. "As I was sure we would."

"You're the prince?" Goku abruptly asked. "How come you didn't tell us yesterday?"

Regano laughed lightly. "You didn't ask!" He then got straight to the point. "Well, I have quite a long line of people waiting for help after you, so I'll make this quick and easy." He motioned to his two aides back at the throne. "Orris and Zatar have told me all about your situation. I do have the artifact you're seeking, and I'd be more than happy to give it back to you."

"Alright!" Goku cheered.

"Thank you very much," Trunks replied. "We know it's awfully imposing of us, but-"

"However," Regano interrupted him. "I'm sorry. However, there is one thing I'd like to ask of you in exchange for it. It's a rather simple request."

He turned away from Trunks and Goku, taking a single step to stand directly in front of Pan. Everyone in the room watched intently as he bowed slightly and reached out to gently take her hand in his, and she was speechless as he spoke to her.

"My lady," he said, "would you please grant me your hand in marriage?"

The entire room was silent for barely a second, before the chatter of the crowds suddenly rose to a fever pitch in response. Pan simply stood there in shock, her face redder than Xuelong, as Regano smiled at her while awaiting some sort of answer.

"Okay," Goku said. "_**That**_ one I didn't see coming."


	16. Another Day In Paradise

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED**

_By Sean Gallagher (Kaboom Krusader)_

Chapter Sixteen – _"Another Day In Paradise"_

The crowd of people within the throne room could only silently look on in shock after the prince's bold proposal. Its target, the young lady among the three alien visitors, was particularly taken aback, and didn't even make any effort to remove her hand from Regano's gentle grasp. The prince himself was the one to do so, letting go and standing up straight from his bow while never looking away from her dumbfounded but still pretty face.

"I realize this is rather sudden," he spoke amicably. "But I don't see any need to mince words about it. I was quite taken with your brazenness after our little rendezvous yesterday evening."

"H-hey!" Pan finally spoke back after hearing a few giggles from the crowd. "P-pick your words more carefully, geez!"

"Rondey-voo?" Goku was now just as confused from the big word as he was from the abruptly-popped question. "Pan, what's he mean?"

"It wasn't what you think!" Pan yelled at him.

"What do I think it was?"

"Ahem," Regano reclaimed their attention, focusing on Pan again. "My dear Pan, I know this must be a lot for you to take in, especially with the safety of your planet foremost in your thoughts. So trust me, I won't press you too harshly for an immediate answer." He smiled warmly. "Please, take as much time as you need to make up your mind, and feel free to enjoy yourself on our beautiful planet in the meantime."

With that, he took a step back and addressed the crowds around him. "And all of you, please spread the word! Shower our guests with the warmth and hospitality of Planet Koum! Pan, and..." He paused for a moment and looked back at the others sheepishly. "I beg your pardon, I don't remember your names..."

* * *

"T'be honest," Goku explained, "you don't hafta worry about me for your training. You know what it takes now, so you could do it even without me around."

Roughly an hour later, the gang of Earthlings found themselves outside the Koumian palace, within the garden surrounding it. They were crowded around a wooden bench beside a tree, off in a secluded corner, and a certain prissy missy was energetically voicing her opinion on the morning so far.

"That's not the problem, Grandpa!" Pan protested his nonchalant approach to the whole situation. "This, this… prince fancy pants just proposed to me out of nowhere!"

"Well at least he ain't beatin' around the bush with it," Goku still seemed laid-back about it all. "When your grandma and I met when we were real little, I had no idea I'd agreed to marry her until she showed up years later an' started yelling at me. I was all, 'what are you talkin' about,' and she-"

"That's not the problem either!"

"I have to say though," Trunks was leaning against the tree and also seemed quite relaxed in spite of her situation – he might even have been amused. "I had some doubts about you coming along on this trip, Pan, but now I'm glad you did. Thanks to you, getting this Dragon Ball's going to be a snap."

"Don't you start, too!" She yelled at him, then sat down next to Goku and pouted. "This sucks. I came along to get away from this kind of stuff."

"Well," Goku took the hint and tried to help instead of hurt. "He does seem to really like you, for one reason or another." He folded his arms and quizzically stared into space. "But at the same time, we're in kind of a pickle here."

"That's true. You may not want to marry him, but," Trunks pondered as well. "One way or another, he's our ticket to the Dragon Ball. We're not in any sort of trouble like on Imegga, but it's still a pretty tough situation."

"These people've been so nice to us, too," Goku added. "It'd suck if we had to take the Dragon Ball by force." He suddenly seemed annoyed. "Now I want pickles."

"Well, fine, what do you want me to do about it?" Pan retorted. "If not pissing off a bunch of aliens we're never gonna see again is REALLY that important."

"I don't know, really. Maybe just humor the prince for now?" Trunks suggested. "He seems like a pretty nice guy. It couldn't hurt to stay on his good side one way or another."

"Or you can just marry 'im," Goku said.

"I like that one," Regano added out of nowhere.

"Waaah!" Pan was the only one caught by surprise, as Trunks and Goku had, respectively, seen and sensed him casually approach their little corner of the gardens, coming right up behind the bench. He had ditched the royal robes from his public audience, trading them for a more casual and loose outfit much like the one they'd first met him in yesterday. He smiled warmly at all of them.

"Hello again," he said.

"Hi there, prince… uh, your majesty. Sir?" Goku stumbled over how to address the young monarch, more out of indifference than actual confusion.

"Oh, please, just call me Regano," he replied. "I'm the prince, but I'm not comfortable with things being too formal. I'd much rather us be friends above all else." He smiled again and extended a hand. "Especially if we're to be family eventually."

"Fine with me! I don't like fussin' too much about that, either," Goku agreed, turning around in his seat to shake Regano's hand. He seemed to pause in thought for a moment before smiling and speaking up again. "I sure wouldn't mind havin' more grandkids, too."

"Huh? Grandchildren?" This seemed to take Regano by surprise. "How do you mean?"

"Excuse me!" Pan protested. "Aren't you two getting a little ahead of yourselves?!"

"Ah, I'm so sorry," Regano quickly abandoned his undetermined prospective relative and swooped around to the front side of the bench to face Pan. He knelt down slightly and gently took her hand before she could do anything about it, then instantly turned on the charm again. "Pan, you look even lovelier out in the sunlight."

Goku decided to crank the teasing up to an eleven. "Pan an' Regano, sittin' in a tree..."

"Ah!" Regano's face lit up as he seemed to have an epiphany. "So climbing trees is a popular activity for couples on your planet?" He enthusiastically studied the specimen beside them.

"S-shut up!" Pan protested, blushing more. "Both of you!"

"Anyway," Trunks interjected and addressed the prince, "to what do we owe the pleasure?"

"Well, my duties for the morning are over, and I have plenty of free time now," Regano chipperly answered. "And I'd imagine you haven't experienced much of the area aside from the city yet?"

"No, not really," Goku said. "We ain't been here very long."

"That's perfect, then!" Regano seemed excited. "You've still got a lot to see, and who better than me to be your guide? I'll show you why Planet Koum is such a wonderful place to visit… or, if you're so inclined, to stay and live as a beloved and beautiful queen?"

"I told you to knock that off!"

Despite Pan's protests, Regano was right. Being granted the "royal tour," so to speak, was much more effective than simply wandering around on their own, and they were introduced to some delightful sights they couldn't believe they'd missed before.

They were first led to a surprisingly close landmark; once down one of many rustic paths to the shoreline of the palace's island, they discovered that a large portion of the main island adjacent to the mighty stone bridge was, in fact, hollow. The vast cave served as a haven for a variety of fish species, drawing many Koumian fisherman to actually live and trawl the waters there. Goku was especially delighted to learn that a certain long, light-sensitive eel was the origin of the savory and tender meat he'd been blessed with the day before. The fish markets on the island's topside would never be the same now that he knew what to ask for.

There was a large network of spacious and well-lit tunnels leading out of the now somewhat less fish-filled cave. Regano led them through one which emerged on the far side of the island, not far from its edge. Rather than the sandy beaches the Earthlings would see on the approach from their ship, they were greeted with a large stretch of shallow sandbars, covered with rocks of various shapes and size. The cave was set in to a steep cliff line by the water's edge, which transformed sharply into a wide vista of rolling grassy fields which stretched across just as much of the main island as the sloping and rocky cityscape in the distance.

They were cheerfully led across the vast grassy half of the island, angling clear around the heavily-populated city and encountering few signs of civilization other than some scattered, independent homesteads and humble, electricity-generating windmills.

"So you are a little more advanced than you seem at first glance," Trunks noted, admiring the structures. "I noticed some basic electric odds and ends back in the city, plus the strung lights in the tunnels. But a wind power system like this is impressive."

"That's right," Regano concurred. "We didn't always have such things, though. A lot of it came from… other people."

"You mean Freeza?" Goku bluntly filled in the blanks.

"Oh," Regano was taken aback a bit. "So you're aware of our people's past, then?" He nodded solemnly. "I'm not very proud of it all, even though we didn't have much choice at the time. But," he waved. "After Freeza was out of the picture, we had little use for most of his 'gifts.' As we returned to peace, we got rid of the majority of the technology. All in all, we prefer a much simpler lifestyle."

"Simple, but comfortable," Trunks specified. "Looks like you kept just enough of it to improve your quality of life without drastically changing it."

Regano smiled again and extended his arms into the wind. "It's all about balance," he explained. "Whether it's of nature and technology, strength and gentleness, or even the night and the day, we try to find comfort in life through harmony between the extremes." He turned and kept walking. "Even with all that's happened to us in the past few decades, I'm glad we've managed to keep that happy stability."

With that, he somehow seemed in an even better mood than before, managing to energetically create an extra pace ahead of the Earthlings. They had to step up their own stride to catch up to him. As they walked, Pan found herself staring intently at Regano's back, noticing his strong but casual stride. She lingered behind Goku and Trunks, who didn't notice her focus.

The group soon found themselves back at the southern shores of the island, lined once again with spacious beaches and comparatively much more pedestrian traffic. A variety of people were relaxing and playing along the shoreline and in the water just the same as one would expect on Earth's beaches. The midday crowds thickened the farther along the group went, until they came around into a large bay which indented itself within the island up against the borders of the city. As had been the case since their arrival, the Earthling group was welcomed and treated warmly by just about every native Koumian they crossed paths with, with the subtle exception of some teenage girls shooting dirty looks at Pan. The environment was, all in all, exceptionally inviting.

"I wanna go swimming!" Goku proclaimed.

"Not when your only swim trunks are back in the ship!" Pan quickly shut that idea down.

"_Priiiince_!"

A collective high-pitched cheer suddenly broke out from one nearby part of the beach, and its source was quickly revealed as a group of young children seemed to appear out of nowhere. While plenty of other natives had given their usual assortment of casual bows, nods, smiles, and what-not to Prince Regano as they met him, this rambunctious bunch was much less subtle. The group of about half a dozen youngsters crowded around him, assaulting him with friendly and excited greetings. Regano did his best to pay attention to all of them fairly in turn, though one particular little girl seemed to possess and promptly exercised the special privilege of riding on his shoulders. After putting her down and redirecting the entire throng of cheerful personified chaos towards another section of the beach, he managed a moment to turn back to the Earthling trio.

"Sorry," he said. "But it looks like I'm under new ownership for the time being. Oh!" He suddenly had an idea. "Why don't you all come back to the palace for dinner this evening?"

"Huh?" All the previously-consumed fish seemed to instantly disappear from Goku's stomach at the mention of the magic word.

"We'd be better able to relax and all get to know each other," Regano explained, talking mostly to Pan. "A more intimate setting than out here in public, and there's a few people I'd like you to meet."

"I don't see why not," Trunks remarked, then turned to Pan. "What do you think?"

"Um…" Pan averted her eyes. "I guess so."

"You had me at 'dinner,'" Goku said.

"Good!" Regano turned his head around and waved to them one last time as he finally acquiesced to the children's urgent demands for his attention. "I'll see you at the palace at sunset!" The three watched as he hurriedly caught up to the youngsters, not minding at all idly standing around on the warm beach.

"Well, you were right, Trunks," Goku said. "Definitely a nice guy."

"It isn't every day you see monarchy who are down-to-earth enough to mingle with people so casually," Trunks noted in reply. He glanced at Pan and teasingly smiled again. "He seems good with kids, too, huh?"

This time, Pan didn't snap back at either of them as expected. She simply continued to watch Regano's back as he gained distance from them with the children. Goku and Trunks eyed her curiously for a moment and each flashed a smile at the other. Then Goku stopped and seemed concerned as he looked up at the sky.

"Hey, which sunset d'you think he meant?"

* * *

The first of Koum's two suns had already set nearly an hour ago, and its partner in the sky was well on its way to join it when Regano finally arrived back at the palace. As he often did, he bypassed the front entrance entirely, opting instead to spiral upwards through the sky to land on the throne level's balcony. He touched down, and as he briskly walked towards the stairway leading below, he was not surprised by the individual waiting to greet him. Zatar hurriedly intercepted the young monarch and matched his speed as they descended into the stairway.

"You are quite late, as usual," he chastened. "Your guests already arrived some time ago. The youngest one grows especially impatient for dinner."

"He's not actually the youngest," Regano chuckled, and then noticed Zatar raise an eyebrow in confusion. "Sorry, long story. I'll get washed up and changed, then head right to the dining hall."

"Two of the three seem to be very fond of you already," Zatar carried on the conversation as they bypassed the first sub-floor and continued down towards the second. "The third, however, is the young lady you so hastily proposed to."

"Well, I can't expect Pan to warm up to the idea so quickly," Regano replied, seeming awfully relaxed about it. "I know I certainly would feel the same way."

"You certainly would," Zatar noted with a hint of annoyance. "That much is evident from all the marriage prospects you've already rejected." The two reached their desired floor of the palace, and set down the long and spacious hallway bisecting it. "I'm curious. What caused you to favor a low-class alien girl over the wealth of young noble ladies on our own world?"

"Well, I guess it'd have political advantages," Regano explained. "It's hard enough as it is to avoid playing favorites with the different families!" He smiled as he moved on. "But beyond that… I like her. She's strong-willed and outspoken, but it's obvious she's caring and gentle beneath the surface." He clenched a fist. "Plus, she's strong. A caring personality goes well with physical strength. She'd make a great queen someday." He relaxed and spoke more softly. "My mother was much the same way, from what Orris has told me... And what I can remember for myself."

"So she was, as was your father," Zatar concurred. "Perhaps a bit too much so for their own good, at times." He then adjusted the subject. "However, there's also the matter of these 'Dragon Balls' artifacts your guests are hunting. As attracted to the girl as you may be, you've left her with little choice in the matter. The safety of their entire world is of too great importance to refuse your offer."

"Oh, there's no need to worry," Regano assured his elder. They finally reached the far end of the hallway, where they were met by the wide door to Regano's spacious chambers. The prince opened the door but turned back to Zatar before he entered. "Really, I'm not that cruel."

Zatar was puzzled. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, you were there, weren't you? Technically, I never said I'd give them their Dragon Ball _only_ if Pan agrees. While I'd like for that to happen, obviously," Regano flashed a warmly mischievous smile once more. "I plan to give it to them either way."

Zatar was taken aback, his eyes wide and his brow furled as he tried to soak in this unexpected news. Regano subtly snickered once again at the old man's expression, then spoke one last time as he entered his room and closed the door behind him.

"Don't tell anyone. See you at dinner!"

* * *

"So… hungry…"

"How?" Pan, seated right next to Goku, protested his unwarranted anxiety. "You were literally still eating while we left the ship on our way here!"

"That was just a warm-up snack," Goku informed her, being totally serious. "T' get me in the mood for the real dinner."

"What _doesn't_ get you in the mood for dinner?"

"Sleeping," he answered, still completely straight-faced. "Because then I'm lookin' forward to breakfast instead."

Pan simply shook her head before propping it up with both arms atop the wide table. Its surface was elliptical in shape and surrounded by eight seats, though only four of which were occupied so far. Given their uncertainty to the exact time, the trio of Earthlings had decided to get to the palace early for their dinner date, leaving Gill behind on the ship with all the equipment cabinets securely locked. They were expected, greeted, and escorted up to the dining hall within the palace's upper floors, but informed that their gracious host was still AWOL.

So their only company for the past half an hour, aside from occasional guards and staff passing through, was Orris. But he seemed far more entertained by them than vice-versa. He rested upon a seat across the table from them, and leaned back in his chair with an amused expression.

"You know, I've always heard that Saiyans have voracious appetites," he remarked. "I can't wait to see that for myself."

"Be careful what you wish for," Trunks replied, seated on the opposite side of Goku from Pan. "Though Goku's the only full Saiyan of us three, to be honest. My dad's told me that Saiyans are actually most gluttonous as kids, too. Must need a lot of energy while still growing up."

"Well that'd explain a lot," Pan said. "Thank Dende for capsules, or else we'd have to turn around and go back to Earth for more food once a week."

Goku had put etiquette aside as usual and rested his chin atop the table, shifting his eyes back and forth while doing his best to ignore everyone talking about him. Suddenly, his head rose with a sharp jolt as he was the first to detect someone approaching. He turned to look at the doorway, hoping that whomever he heard and sensed from the corridor on the other side would be Regano. He was, however, wrong for the third time in the last ten minutes as Zatar entered.

"Aw, it's just the adviser old-timer," he pouted, having somewhat expected disappointment again.

He was not, however, expecting the sudden dirty look the old Koumian shot him. It only lasted a split second before Zatar forced himself back to his usual stoic expression, but Goku still definitely noticed it. He watched the elderly man curiously as he worked his way to his spot at the table, where he carefully sat across from the Earthlings, on the edge of the table beside Orris and opposite Trunks.

"I just now met the prince as he arrived," Zatar informed them all, his voice betraying hints of simultaneous distraction and frustration. "He will join us shortly."

Goku continued to study Zatar, doing his best to be subtle about it. He took note of his worried and anxious expression, his brow curled in contemplation of clearly some other important matter beyond that of dinner. If Goku didn't know better, he'd almost think that their group was the cause. Then, of course, there was also his ki. When you focused and let it soak in, it almost felt… dirty…

Goku's concentration was ripped away when his senses were overwhelmed. Evidently the kitchen staff had been informed of Regano's arrival. That's the only reason why they would possibly start to cart the food into to the wide arched entryway between the dining room and the kitchen. It was beyond Goku's sight and reach, but certainly didn't escape his sense of smell. On the contrary, it sought out and tempted it. The delectable odors of a wide variety of dishes almost physically tingled his nose, and his stomach seemed to respond by twisting and flexing itself as if to stretch for a marathon. He couldn't stand it. He had to eat, and now…

Suddenly, Goku's attention was yet again diverted when he heard someone else enter the opposite door. Like a chump, he whipped his head around in anticipation of it being Regano.

"AW, COME ON!"

It was not only not Regano, but it wasn't even one teenage male. In fact, it was the opposite of one teenage male. Through the entrance came a tall and pretty Koumian woman, in her late 20's at most. She had short and practical hair, an authoritative but gentle complexion, and was a bit on the short side but had a slender build. Darting around ahead of her was a small girl, with long silky silver hair, running around in bare feet and a knee-length single-piece dress, and…

"Hey," Pan noticed. "Isn't she…?"

The little girl was a familiar face to not only the hosts, but also to the guests. She was the lucky young lady who apparently had exclusive rights to the coveted seat on Regano's shoulders at the beach earlier. She seemed to recognize them as well.

"Hiiii!" She cheered as she waved.

"Hiya!" Goku was not surprisingly the most enthusiastic to reply in turn as the little girl followed her evident caretaker around to the table. She was halted so the lady could make sure she was fastened and dressed properly for the meal. As the two of them settled in to each their own differently sized seats, Orris took the opportunity to introduce them.

"This is my lovely wife, Silva," he stated.

"Y'mean the big one, right?" Goku evidently thought fit to ask.

"Er, yes," Orris continued. "She's the head nursemaid by title, but is also in charge of much of the day-to-day activity among the royal staff. She's helped for many years with the prince's upbringing, as well as-"

"Brother!" The little girl abruptly hopped away from Silva's reach, much to her visible annoyance, and zoomed around the table and across the room. There, she gleefully leapt at full force at Regano, who had just waltzed in through the hallway entrance without anyone noticing. He caught her, stumbling a bit from her forceful embrace, and held her up against his side as he nodded in acknowledgment of everyone else.

"… As well as Princess Prika, his younger sister."

"Brother," Prika enthusiastically pointed towards the table. "Are those th' people?"

"That's right," Regano said, gently placing her down and starting to walk her back.

"I wanna sit next t' them!" She darted out of his reach and hastily climbed up into the seat next to Pan, which had been intended for Regano. Her newfound inability to see over the edge of the table elicited a sigh from Silva, and spurned her to get up and switch around the cushioned booster pad so the little one could sit and eat properly. Regano meanwhile walked around and took Prika's original seat, at the end of the table across from Pan and Prika, and finally greeted the group.

"Hello, everyone," he brightly spoke. As he settled in, he playfully eyed Pan and spoke directly to her. "My lady." Her resultant slight frown wasn't quite enough to counteract her blush. What happened next just made it even worse. Prika, as though just realizing some great truth, looked back and forth between Regano and Pan before settling on the latter.

"Are you th' one who's gonna be my new big sister?"

Pan lurched a bit at the question, and her blush increased as she answered.

"Uh… I don't know," she clumsily answered, conflicted between being honest and hurting the starry-eyed little girl's feelings.

Regano, however, seemed pleased by her ambiguity. "That's the most promising answer I've heard yet!" He exclaimed.

"YES!" Goku suddenly shouted. His excitement had nothing to do with his granddaughter's marriage prospects, though. It was in response to the kitchen staff finally starting to wheel out carts of food and distribute it, now that Regano had arrived. Goku was presented with and hastily dug into a large bowl of sautéed fish mixed with noodles, and by the time the staff had served everyone else the bowl was already empty and being held up for a refill. A certain somebody was impressed.

"Whoooaaa…!" Prika cooed, and started getting ideas about how to eat her own share.

"So this is the girl I've heard about." Silva finally got a word in, now that Prika was all settled in and likewise engrossed with eating. "About time Regano showed some real interest in someone."

"Huh?" Pan actually seemed interested in her choice of wording, especially since Regano suddenly wore a look of blatant unease. "What does that mean?"

"This guy, with all the time he spends out and about instead of in the palace," Silva smiled deviously and pointed her thumb at the panicky prince next to her. "Has gained quite the reputation as a flirt."

"Oh, _really?"_ Pan practically growled the words at him.

"Don't take it the wrong way, though," Silva continued. "The fact that he's set his sights on you must mean you've got something special going on. To be honest," she smiled at Pan. "I'm actually glad he's finally serious about someone, and that it's not one of the snobby noble girls who keep going after him… Oh, shoot." She abruptly turned her attention back to Prika, who was making a mess in her attempts to imitate Goku's eating habits.

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Orris spoke up to his significant other. "You used to be one of those 'snobby noble girls' yourself, if I recall."

"Yes," she didn't miss a beat as she reached out of sight under the table with her free hand. "But I was smart enough to settle for what I could get instead of aiming for royalty."

"Ouch," Orris responded, though whether from physical pain or not was a mystery.

"And I was never snobby," she added.

"Okay. Ouch." Definitely at least partly physical pain.

"Anyway," Goku removed his face from his third serving of fish and noodles long enough to address Regano. "You must be a really brave guy to wanna marry Pan," he said, inadvertently flipping around the exchange from a moment before.

"What do you mean?" Regano was curious but now even more wary of Pan.

"Well, I'd warn you 'bout her cookin' skills, but," Goku said, as he glanced back and forth between his empty bowl and the attending servant. "I guess it'd be moot if she's a queen with lotsa people to cook for her." He smiled and held up his bowl, and the lady got the hint, frantically motioning towards the kitchen for more to be brought out.

"It's not all hopeless," Trunks pitched in. "The pancakes she tried cooking the other day were actually mostly solid."

"Shut up!" Pan was not amused. "I'll get better!"

"You could have all the tutoring you want from the royal cooks," Regano didn't miss his shot.

"Don't you start again!"

"What're pancakes?" Prika asked.

"They're like the best Earth breakfast food ever," Goku responded, leaning forward so he could see the young girl past Pan. "You should try some once Pan gets better at makin' them!"

"Stop it!"

* * *

Dinner couldn't possibly have lasted much longer than it did, because even if it had, the kitchen would have run into serious difficulty gathering and cooking more food. Fortunately, Goku had eaten enough over the course of the rest of the day that his appetite was eventually quenched after his fourteenth consecutive serving. Either that, or he simply decided to give up and cut himself off, as everyone else was long done eating and heading out the door. Whichever it was, it didn't stop him from carrying off one last bowl of food as he chased after them.

As he caught up, Goku opted to watch the group quietly as he followed along and steadily munched away. Trunks was deep in discussion with Orris about the palace's architecture and history, his suspicions about it having once been a fortress now confirmed. Prika kept herself stuck between Regano and Pan, barraging the latter with a non-stop series of questions that were too personal for her to fully answer but formed so cutely they couldn't be ignored. Silva was moderately amused and did little to put an end to it, while Regano was even more amused and egged his sister on.

But Goku was actually focused primarily on Zatar. He wasn't sure if anyone else had noticed, but the old man's stressed and silent demeanor had persisted all throughout dinner. The man's plate of food had barely been touched, which was what had given Goku cause for concern, and prompted him to keep watching. Perhaps this was simply the way he always acted, and Trunks and Pan had been too preoccupied then and now in their own conversations to notice. But a lifetime as a warrior had given Goku a keen sense for judging others' emotions, and he didn't like the vibes he was receiving from Zatar now. It wasn't just anxiety. It was something worse, for sure.

"I think it's time for bed," Silva declared. Goku's attention was reclaimed as he also realized that Prika's chattiness had dwindled considerably over the past minute or so, and the little girl was starting to rub her eyes out of obvious fatigue.

"Nooouuu, I'm not sleepy," she protested, despite the clear symptoms to the contrary. "I wanna play with brother and Pan more…"

"They'll both be here tomorrow," Silva was firm but warm in response. "Now say goodnight."

"Mmmm," Prika more tilted over than anything else in Regano's direction, and planted a tight hug around his midsection. "G'night…"

"Goodnight, missy," Regano returned, then knelt down a bit and addressed her up close, a devilish smile on his own face. "Say goodnight to Pan, too."

"Yeee," Prika complied as eagerly as she had the energy to, sort of pirouetting around and crashing against Pan in a similar waist-high embrace, "Gud night, Pan… pancakes…"

"Uh…" Pan tenderly patted her on the head. "Good night." Prika seemed content and wobbled her way back to Silva's side, while Pan shot Regano a pouty scowl. "That's cheating."

He returned her grimace with his usual warm smile. "All's fair in love and war," he asserted. Having learned her lesson on Imegga, Pan decided not to ask how he knew of that particular Earth idiom. She didn't get the chance, anyway.

"I shall excuse myself now as well," Zatar suddenly cut in. "I have some important work to tend to before I retire." The group had just reached the spiraling stairway at the end of the palace's main hallway, and without so much as a courteous nod to any of them, Zatar hurriedly detached himself from the group and took off up the stairs.

"Um," For once, Regano didn't have all the right words. "Okay, then…?"

"Jerky as ever, that guy," Silva said. With some difficulty from the youngster's floppy state, she had scooped up the already mostly asleep Prika into her arms. She patted the girl on the head a bit, and sighed softly. "Always a nursemaid, never a…" Her train of thought seemed to transition, and she demanded Orris and Regano's attention once more before she likewise departed. "Are you two still going to do your evening training?" She asked.

"If our guests don't mind indulging us," Orris answered, glancing to the Earthlings.

"Sure, sounds like fun," Trunks replied with a chuckle. "You're talking to three Saiyans here, remember?" He looked at Goku as if expecting him to chime in, but noticed that the number-one battle junkie hadn't even seemed to hear it. "Goku?"

"Huh?" Goku's gaze had been fixated somewhat back in the direction they'd come from, and the current topic now seemed to click for him abruptly. "Oh! Regano's training? Cool!"

"Well, just make sure you don't let them 'indulge' you any later than you have to," she specifically lectured Orris now. "There's some things that I need you to take care of before bed."

"Oh?" Orris teased her. "Like what?"

"That doesn't matter," she scolded as she turned around and entered the stairway. "Just don't be too late coming home."

"Yes, dear," he conceded, watching her go down the stairs. He turned his head as he felt a small hand begin to pat him on the back.

"I feel for ya, buddy," Goku floated in mid air and consoled Orris, knowing all about being bossed around by one's wife. "So, what's this about training, now?"

Regano characteristically led the group upstairs and into the air from the balcony rather than downstairs and out the door. They followed him only a short distance to one of the palace island's few smaller, cylindrical buildings. Due to a lack of spacious balconies like the palace, the five touched down in a small courtyard and walked in through the main entrance.

Though Orris had informed them on the way that it was the army's headquarters and barracks, it certainly didn't appear particularly strict or militaristic. Its bottom half was a relaxation area much like a smaller-scaled version of that in the palace, and the typical relaxed Koumian way of life was evident even here. Regano and Orris, despite their positions, were apparently considered "just one of the guys" by the soldiers, as most of the present off-duty ones greeted them with little more than just a nod or wave. The one random individual who did offer a salute did so from the reclined comfort of a couch. He may have been a little drunk. The Earthlings were actually given more attention, being the hottest new thing in town. A few of the younger recruits even sent a friendly wink or two to Pan, followed up by mischievous arm-nudges to Regano.

While the crew quarters and office facilities were upstairs, Regano actually led the group downstairs into what appeared to be an underground facility for sports and training. It was wide and open, and judging from the rather broad channel of water flowing in from the rocks, it had all been carved out from the cave of an underground spring. A full half of the room on the far side of this channel was apparently set aside as a single, large sparring arena, and the soldiers currently occupying it were perfectly willing to concede it to Regano and Orris. In fact, they seemed excited to watch.

After ten more minutes, it was clearly evident why. The two combatants put on one hell of a show for all attending. The two wielded what seemed to be a traditional Koumian weapon; a type of spear which sported a heavy scimitar-like blade on one end and a weighted metal ball on the other which was just as effective for blunt force attacks as it was for counter-balancing the blade. Regano and Orris were both quite adept at using it, and while Orris was obviously the more skilled and battle-experienced of the two, Regano showed a remarkable ability to think on his feet. More than once during their bout, he surprised his teacher with unexpectedly innovative uses of the weapon, such as twirling the weighted end around his own head to send it careening straight towards Orris' face at an unblockable angle, or pushing it against the ground to vault himself into the air. Eventually, it proved too much.

"Alright, alright," Orris panted out the words, submissively taking a reverse grip and laying his blade's weight on the ground to signal his surrender. "I give up." He let himself fall back to sit on the ground and catch his breath.

"Wow," Trunks was the first of the Earthlings to speak since the match started. "That was downright amazing."

"Yeah," Pan seemed to force herself to agree. "It was pretty good."

"Well, look at that," Orris mentioned to Regano. "Your showing off at my expense actually earned you a compliment from her."

"Showing off?" Trunks inquired.

"Naturally," Orris said as he hoisted himself back up again. "It's one of the few things the prince is actually humble about, but," Orris picked up his weapon and began to walk. "He's actually stronger than me. By a pretty decent margin, too."

"Don't be so harsh on yourself," Regano insisted. "I've got a long way to go until I can match your technique. But, yes, I'll admit it," he looked at Pan. "Definitely showing off." She blinked once or twice and averted her eyes.

"Hey, the way you used your weapons," Trunks said. "There seemed to be more force and speed behind those blows than there should have been. Were you doing something?"

"Ah, I was wondering if you picked up on that," Regano beamed. "Yes, it's part of our elite warriors' training. We practice a way to channel our energy into our weapons. We could teach you, if you'd like."

"You're on your own there, I'm afraid," Orris called from over where he was putting his weapon away. "Your trouncing me has left me exhausted enough as it is. Silva isn't going to be happy…"

"Oh yeah, I'd love some pointers. I've got a good sword from a friend years ago, but I'm not exactly an expert with it. Actually," he turned around. "Goku, you're better with weapons than I am. I know it's been years since you used Nyoibo, but… Goku?"

"Huh?" Goku had evidently been distracted again. "What about Nyoibo?"

"Again, we're talking about training, but you're not even paying attention," Trunks was actually concerned now. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Ah, yeah, sorry," Goku waved it off. "I was just, uh, watching something." He then decided to take his leave. "Swords ain't really my thing, though. Closest I can ever remember to usin' one was when Vegeta and I were…" His interest seemed to wane completely. "Hey, I think I'm gonna cruise back around the city, or something…" With that, he raised two fingers up to his forehead and abruptly disappeared just a moment after.

"Well, that's odd," Trunks noted. "Normally he's the biggest training addict out of all three of us." He shrugged it off, and quickly fetched his small capsule case from his pants pocket and opened it up. Picking out a particular capsule, he pressed the button, and with a small _BANG_ and a puff of smoke, his treasured sword materialized in mid air, from which he caught it.

"Amazing!" Regano exclaimed.

"Is it, really?" Trunks pondered. "I know it's supposed to be enchanted against demons or something, but otherwise I guess it is pretty well crafte-"

"No, I mean that device you used to store it!" Regano promptly invaded Trunks' personal space in an effort to investigate his capsules. "How do they work?"

* * *

It had rained early that morning. It was a short, passing, isolated shower that happened to blow over the Koum capitol island and briskly dowse its inhabitants to wake them up. But almost like resetting a computer when something glitches, the weather passed almost alarmingly quickly. Now, the suns were once again, as they usually did, visible and shining brightly down on Koum's landscape, recreating the same warm mid-day that was almost monotonously standard for the world.

Among the hundreds of the city's denizens out and about enjoying the weather were a particular high-profile couple. One of them still wasn't too fond of being labeled as a "couple," but was noticeably starting to become less bothered by the idea. Otherwise, she wouldn't have humored the other by accepting his invitation to spend the day together. The inclusion of a particular young and energetic third wheel had no doubt made it easier.

Pan and Regano had, through no particular decision process, ended up alongside the eastern borders of the city, along one of many covered pavilions overlooking the beach. Not too long ago, they'd departed from a large, open-air amphitheater in the city behind them, where they had attended the premiere of a rousing comedy play about the wacky misadventures of a hermit and his pet fish. While she was still apprehensive about spending time "alone" with Regano, especially given that the humble prince didn't opt for any sort of VIP seating and instead settled the three of them in among the crowds, Pan would have been lying if she said she hadn't enjoyed it. She was still relieved to be away from the hustle and bustle and back in a more relaxed environment. Here and now, the two of them were simply enjoying the shade and the quiet, idly watching from a distance as Prika ran playing on the beach with other children.

As they both leaned against the wooden railing of the pavilion, Pan couldn't help but feel a little confused. Three days ago, when Regano had first boldly proposed to her, she would have given anything to make him stop talking and leave her alone. But now, she was sort of disappointed that he was choosing to be silent. All the while that she, Goku, and Trunks had been on this planet, Regano had remained just as cordial to her as he was that morning in the throne room. He was enthusiastic but polite, he never stopped focusing on finding ways to make her happy, and even though he often lightly joked or teased about it, not once had he actually compelled her for an answer to his proposal.

Pan almost wished he _was_ pressing the issue so she could have an excuse to not like him back.

"Beautiful view, isn't it?"

Pan jumped a bit, Regano's abrupt words having interrupted her little session of introspection. She looked at him and, after giving it a moment to discern that his comment wasn't an expected play on words in regards to her own looks, answered.

"Yeah, it is," she said. "But I haven't seen a view on this planet yet that ISN'T beautiful."

She meant it. The world as a whole, both this main island and the few outlying landmarks to which she'd been taken on tour, was truly breathtaking. As much as she'd quickly dismissed Goku's joke about just forgetting Earth and living here, it was almost an attractive option now. She didn't have much going on for her in terms of a social life back on Earth, after all. Especially not compared to being the future queen of a race of pretty much the friendliest and most tranquil people she'd ever met. It's not like she wouldn't even be able to visit Earth, either. With Goku available to teleport her, there'd be no real limit to how many trips back and forth she could make. The only thing it might actually affect would be her training…

"Regano?"

He seemed pleased that she was in rare form by initiating conversation with him. "Yes?"

"Koumians are really strong, right?" He nodded in response. "And Vegeta told us that you used to be conquerors too, and worked for Freeza."

"That's right."

"Well… I guess I just don't get why there's such a big difference between that and now. Why are you so peaceful even though you're so strong, and have all these advanced ways to fight, and everything? It even seems like you're trying extra hard to be peaceful. Even more than you have to."

"Well," Regano seemed unsure how to answer. "I guess because… you're right. We are trying extra hard. We sort of have to." He turned to her and spoke a little more seriously than before. "I've probably put this off for too long," he admitted. "But if you're going to be queen," he winked and elicited a raised eyebrow from Pan. "Then you should probably know more about our history."

He turned back to lean on his arms against the pavilion's railing again, and continued to gaze out at the sea as he spoke.

"Koum wasn't always so serene," he explained. "Our ancient history is filled with one brutal, territorial war after another. Entire communities would be wiped out whenever another region's warlord decided he wanted their land. Our population's growth was constantly stunted from it all."

Pan wasn't too surprised. Thinking back, the planet certainly didn't seem too densely populated outside of the scattered cities. At least, not compared to Earth.

"The wars were so constant and widespread," Regano stressed. "That it's thought even the planet's landscape was altered by the high-powered battles in those ancient times. What may have once been continents are now just chains of islands." His tone shifted. "But at one point, we began to get alien visitors, and they caused us to finally begin uniting among ourselves. It started out as just a shared xenophobia, since many of the aliens turned out to be hostile invaders. But eventually, in defending our planet, we began to better appreciate its beauty."

"And things ended up how they are now?"

"Well," Regano smiled. "Not quite so quickly. It was only about a millennium ago that were first had a single, unifying king, and war among ourselves ended only a few centuries ago. Things were looking bright, but…"

Pan blinked. "But what?"

"That's when Freeza came."

"Oh…" Pan could see where this was going. "I know what that means."

Regano nodded. "We'd always been able to fight off invaders before, and Freeza's forces were no different. In fact, we ended up impressing him with our power. So one day, he showed up personally, and made us an offer we couldn't refuse."

"I know what you mean," Pan said. "I've been told about him."

"My grandfather was king at the time," Regano continued. "Everyone knew that when a strong race caught Freeza's attention, they either became his subjects or his victims. So I don't blame my grandfather for allying with Freeza for the sake of our survival. Nobody does." He sighed. "The problem was, he came to enjoy it. Being in the company of Freeza and his other supporters so often changed him, and it was if he became one our ancient warlords. His forced loyalty to Freeza transformed into genuine admiration, to the point that when Freeza died, my grandfather took his own life as well."

"Whoa." Pan was a bit surprised. "That's… that's a little bit crazy."

"Unfortunate as it all was," Regano related. "It still had its benefits in the long run. He served as a living example of what our people used to be, and it terrified and repulsed people. After Freeza was gone, our drive for peaceful life was just strengthened even more. Especially for my father, who shaped Koum into what it is today. He and my mother raised me the same way, until…"

"They're not around anymore," Pan somberly concluded. "Are they? I'm sorry…"

Regano shook his head to assure her it was alright. "Prika was just an infant at the time and doesn't remember them, but I do, and the lessons they taught me early on have definitely stuck. Orris and Silva have both helped make sure of that." He frowned a bit. "I worry sometimes about Zatar, though. He's been the chief adviser ever since my grandfather, and he seems to miss those old days more than most. But thankfully, he's still supported both my father and me."

Pan was simply silent, staring at Regano until he diverted her gaze elsewhere.

"You see that bunker down there on the beach?" He pointed, and Pan followed. The structure in question was one of the series which she, Trunks, and Goku had spotted from orbit and during their landing approach: large, simple oval-shaped metal buildings. Whatever purpose it had served in the past, it had long since been skeletonized, and was currently being used by Prika and the other children as the "battleground" for a high-energy game of tag.

"They used to be attack pod hangars," Regano revealed. "If our forces were given an invasion order, they could flood into dozens of the ships at once within one of those and be clear of the planet in a matter of minutes." He paused, looking down at the children. "This is a much better use for them."

"Pan," he turned back to her and shifted the focus of his monologue. "I haven't been completely truthful with you. I love your fiery personality, your drive for self-improvement, your beauty, your kindness. But there's another big reason why I want you to help me see over my home someday." He reached out and laid a hand on her shoulder. "You're a Saiyan. Saiyans are… no offense, but their history and reputation makes ours look like a delightful walk through a garden in comparison. Saiyans are known as a brutal people, willing to destroy anything and kill anyone just to feel the thrill of battle. Old rumors say they even destroyed their own home planet eons ago."

"So…" Pan was a bit confused. "What part of that would be good?"

"The part where you're NOT like that!" Regano smiled and took her hand. "As queen, you could be a role model for the people. A shining example of triumph against one's nature. Living proof that even people with the most troubled and violent pasts can turn things around. You could become the historical figure that finally marks the beginning of permanent peace for Koum!"

"…"

Regano removed his hand and coughed sheepishly. "Ah, I'm sorry, I got a bit ahead of myself there." He glanced around in minor embarrassment for a moment before speaking again. "Want to go have something to eat?"

* * *

Goku wished he had more hands.

It's not that he minded getting to take an evening tour of the Koumian city, or anything. He didn't mind Trunks impatiently shooing him away from the ship when he tried to help with the routine maintenance, either. He didn't even mind being yelled at for accidentally breaking the water heater because… well, he accidentally broke the water heater.

What he did mind was only being able to carry so much food with him at once. Trunks had handed him some cash at the onset of his exile, and told him to just go keep himself occupied for a few hours. That was easy enough to do, and Goku didn't have to think too hard about what to spend the money on. But one of the few downsides to Planet Koum's culture that Goku had noticed so far was that they didn't really have anything equivalent to restaurants. If you weren't someone high-class or royalty with paid servants to cook for you, then you'd be home cooking with and for your own family. The barbecued fish snacks that Goku had become so fond of from the food stands were intended to provide little more than quick on-the-go sustenance. So it was quite a pain for him to convince the stand's owner to loan him a large tray to carry all this food on.

For the time being, Goku's idle meandering had brought him to a sort of park plaza in the northern outskirts of the city. There was little light in the area aside from some simple electric lanterns scattered around just barely close enough to each other to do any good. Which meant two things. One, that Goku had a pretty good view of the stars over the distance of the ocean, and two, that the handful of romantic couples whom he could sense hiding in the area had a decent amount of privacy.

Which also reminded him to check in on Pan and Regano. He probed outward for their ki, and quickly found them. They were still on their "date" over in the more densely populated arts and entertainment district of the city to the Southeast, though seemed to be a bit closer to the water's edge, in the direction of the ship. Seemed the evening was starting to wind down for them.

With those two accounted for, Goku decided to check in on everyone else. The somewhat familiar and relatively small but vigorous ki, practically right next to Pan and Regan, was assuredly Rika, most likely still burning off what reserves of energy she had left before her rapidly approaching bedtime. A little further from them was Trunks. His ki was subdued and inactive, likely meaning that he'd finished his work on the ship and had gone to bed. Up to the Northeast were the ki signatures of Orris and Silva, both together at their home still quite active, unlike Trunks. Whatever they were up to, it seems they hadn't quite retired to bed yet. As for Zatar… he wasn't anywhere to be found.

"Huh…" Goku thought to himself. Where could he have gone? The old man was pretty strong, just like Regano and Orris, and, as far as Goku could tell, nobody on Koum really seemed capable of suppressing their power. So why couldn't the old man be sensed?

Goku closed his eyes and focused, allowing his sixth sense for ki to expand wider and wider. Perhaps the grumpy royal administrator had taken off to some other part of the planet.

Or, so it seemed, he was in space, now quite far from the planet and getting farther and farther away by the second.

"Huh." Goku blinked, looking upwards. "There he goes." He took another bite of his food.

* * *

Zatar grunted as he took his seat. He had never been particularly fond of space travel, even in his younger days. But he'd always put up with it for the sake of greater ambitions. Both his own, and the king's. But now as an old man, it was even worse. His small personal ship was very militaristic and basic in design, a memento from the old days which he'd made sure to preserve for himself, and it was not very comfortable. His seating now wasn't exactly a cushioned lounge chair, but it was still better, and his joints finally were allowed to relax after a long half a day of travel.

While his journey had been miserable, the destination wasn't much better. He had made his landing on a small colony of sorts upon a gas giant's moon. The colony had originally been built to facilitate a mining operation on the moon, which had long since been abandoned after centuries of business dried up the targeted resources. Now, the place served as one-half civilian settlement and one-half trade outpost. But that was putting it nicely. The place was a back-corner pit of the North Galaxy, and had rapidly devolved into a wretched hive of scum and villainy. All sorts of inscrutable characters did their scheming and scamming here. Including the one Zatar had come to meet with.

When he entered the outpost's lounge and bar area, Zatar's seasoned and experienced eyes had spotted the individual immediately, despite his natural ability to blend in and keep a "low profile," as it were. But of course, as per procedure, Zatar did nothing to draw attention to either one of them. He simply made his way to a lone small two-seat table in a far corner of the room, ordered a drink, and waited. He didn't have to do so for long.

"Predictably punctual, as always," said a gruff voice. Seeming to appear out of nowhere was a small little man. Very small. His head, only its crown topped with a spiky mass of deep red hair, seemed disproportionate to his stout but almost unnaturally muscled body, which was barely any taller than the short-backed seat he heaved himself up into. His face was equally brusque and muscled, with small and pointed ears, a strong jaw, pronounced cheekbones, and most notably, some sort of small, circular cybernetic implant just above his left eyebrow. A long, sub-dermal but visible circuit from it extended around the back of his head and along his spine, before disappearing beneath the collar of his padded armor jacket. Frankly, Zatar found the little creature's appearance repulsive. But he had years of experience dealing with repulsive little creatures for his greater goals, and this was no different.

"Punctuality is to be an expected trait, not an extraordinary one," he remarked in return.

The diminutive scoundrel cracked a wry smile. "You're one to talk, keeping us waiting this long. We've been hanging around this sector taking on small jobs for months now, for your sake." He waved his hand a bit, while reaching with the other one to claim and take a sip Zatar's untouched drink. "Hah, good stuff… I tell you, this line of work is no fun without any worthwhile competition around."

"I apologize."

"Well, no matter," the short one dismissed it. "You've finally gotten in touch, which means one of two things. Either you're about to tell me where we can go stick it, or you're finally ready to do business with us." He folded his arms and smiled again. "I do really hope it's the latter. The boss was so excited to get your message."

"You're correct," Zatar said. "I feel all my efforts have been exhausted. I'm ready to move on."

"Great!" The short one was as enthusiastic as possible without raising his voice. He raised the cup to his lips again. "You have a time estimate for me to pass along?" He took another swig.

"Tomorrow."

The short one almost started choking on the beverage out of surprise, rather than whipping out the obvious spit-take the readers were expecting. He again had to resist raising his voice.

"Tomorrow?! Are you kidding me?"

"You tell me you've kept your forces in the area, ready to move at any time," Zatar reminded him. "Was this claim false?"

"No, no," the short one leaned against the table and rubbed his chin. "We can pull it off if I send word back right away. But still," he raised an eyebrow at Zatar. "Why the sudden rush?"

"Some... unexpected circumstances have demanded it," he briefly stated. "I will gladly explain in more detail to your… boss, as it were, once the operation is complete and we have more free time at our disposal." He leaned forward himself and took a very serious tone. "But I cannot stress enough the expediency with which this must happen now. Do you understand?"

"No problem," the short one confirmed. "Schedule aside, is the plan still the same?"

"Yes," Zatar assured him. "I shall do my part with all the same haste I expect from you." With that, he stood from his chair, signaling the end of the meeting. "I must make my return now. As usual, it will arouse suspicion if I am missed. Farewell." He strode off without looking back, leaving the short alien to stare at his back with no opportunity for a response.

"Geez," he muttered to himself. "Not one of our more pleasant customers." With that, he too made a careful descent from his chair, being cautious not to spill his drink, and strolled off in the opposite direction. "Well, duty calls…"

He turned immediately through a minor doorway adjacent to their table, and began to walk down a dimly-lit hallway leading to another section of the facility. Had he done so mere seconds earlier, he would have come face-to-face with the unknown third set of ears to their conversation, belonging to a body just as small in stature as himself. One who, quite unlike himself, had the ability to mask his power. Not to mention the ability to teleport.


	17. No Coup For You

**DRAGONBALL GT: REVISED**

_By Sean Gallagher (Kaboom Krusader)_

Chapter Seventeen – _"No Coup For You"_

This clear and breezy night would mark the sixth in a row that Pan and her group had spent on this beautiful world. It was hard to keep track, as time seemed to slow to a crawl in this easy-going paradise. You might get so absorbed in relaxing on the beach or partying with the natives that before you know it, it's a year later and you're expecting calls from Earth shouting that there's widespread earthquakes and everything's on fire.

Planet Koum's moon hung full, high, and bright, almost seeming proud of itself for managing to outshine the planet's rings. They still shared the same majestic arc across the stars, having little say against nature placing them together that way. These were the things Pan tended to think up at times like this. Projecting one's problems onto other objects, whether on a larger or smaller scale, could sometimes help put them into perspective.

Vegeta had once told Pan something about a full moon being a source of immense power for Saiyans. But beyond an odd tingling sensation whenever she stared at it for too long, she didn't seem to be reaping any such benefits. It certainly wasn't helping her feel at all empowered now. She was rife with conflict and uncertainty. But at the same time, she wasn't entirely unhappy about it.

* * *

_"Pan!" Goku cried out upon finally spotting her. "Trunks finally fixed the oven! We can have fish sticks tonight!"_

_ Pan and Regano made no change to their pace in approaching the ship as the former was escorted "home" by the gentlemanly latter. Pan naturally saw fit to point out Goku's inherent absurdity as they reached him._

_ "Grandpa," she said. "Why are you so excited about plain old fish sticks? You've spent every day we've been on this planet feasting on exotic seafood."_

_ "That doesn't matter," Goku lectured her as if it should be common knowledge. "There's no substitute for good ol' breaded fish sticks."_

_ "Plus, at the rate you've been going," Trunks added. "You'll end up driving every fish species on this planet to extinction." He looked at Regano. "We can't keep mooching off you guys forever."_

_ "Yeah, Pan," Goku added. "You should figure out whether you're gonna marry Regano or not already. I mean look, he's even escortin' you back to the ship at night even though he doesn't even need to at all. Just like what Goten's out really late doin' every time he goes out with a girl."_

_ "Stop it, Grandpa," Pan insisted, though out of little more than habit at this point._

_ "I'll be honest," Regano said, not wasting an opportunity to flirt. "My time spent with you these past few days has already given me a lifetime's worth of happiness. Even if you don't accept my proposal in the end," he started to turn to leave. "Then wherever your travels take you, I hope you'll remember our time together even half as fondly." He waved to them all as he began to float up into the air. "Goodnight!" _

_ The three watched him soar away, the red evening sunlight luckily camouflaging Pan's slight blush. Once Regano was well out of earshot, Goku spoke up again._

_ "That's weird."_

_ Trunks had a curious look on his face as well, and Pan was evidently the only one of the three not to pick up on why. "What?" She asked. "What's weird?"_

_ "That last thing he said," Trunks pointed out. "About wherever our travels take us?"_

_ "Yeah?" Pan still didn't get it. "So what?"_

_ "Well, he knows we can't leave without the Dragon Ball," Goku said. "Right?"_

* * *

Pan couldn't stop thinking about it. She'd kept thinking about it all through the graciously-portioned fish sticks dinner, she'd kept thinking about it as she showered and prepared for bed, and even once she'd retired to her sleeping spot in the ship's domed lounge, which she had claimed by rock-paper-scissors for the night, she still could do nothing but restlessly lay there and think.

So now, in hopes of both working off some energy and distracting herself, Pan was back out in the Koumian city for a stroll. Very few natives joined her in her insomnia; she'd only seen a few night workers here and there, as well as more royal guards on patrol than usual for some reason.

Eventually, she wound up in the amphitheater that she and Regano had visited the other day. It seemed so much more expansive now that it was empty, especially from her spot in the same seats that Regano had chosen for them before. She leaned back in the simple straw-padded seat, placing her feet up on the one in front of her as she stared out at nothing in particular.

Her thoughts kept running back through all the time she'd ended up spending with Regano, and whether she liked it or not, she found herself seriously weighing the pros and cons of staying with him. Planet Koum was nothing short of a paradise. The people here, all complete strangers, were more friendly and welcoming than even some of her own friends and family. Prika already adored her, and it was hard not to adore the little princess right back. She and Silva already hit it off quite well. Regano himself was… well, he was still kind of annoying. But did Pan like him? Until tonight, she would have never thought she'd say so. But she did. Could that 'like' develop into 'love' if she were to stay? Maybe. Probably.

Definitely.

But what about everyone and everything back on Earth? To tell the truth, Pan didn't have too much to worry about. For one, it seems that obtaining the Dragon Ball on Koum for the sake of the Earth's safety was no longer an issue. That aside… Sure, she'd miss everyone. But what Goku had mentioned almost a week ago now was true. With their advanced space travel technology, not to mention Pan's teleporting grandfather, it wouldn't be difficult for her to visit everyone, or vice-versa. Grandma certainly wouldn't mind Pan ending up a fabulously "comfortable" princess of an entire planet. Dad would surely want to meet and interrogate Regano, but would probably be happy as long as Pan kept up with her studies, and Mom would no doubt be proud of her daughter becoming Koum's strongest inhabitant and protector.

Which was another thing… as strong as Pan was, she was nowhere near the mightiest being back on Earth. Grandpa Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo, Oob, her dad, and even Trunks and Uncle Goten were all ahead of her by leaps and bounds. The special technique Goku had taught her was proving far more tricky to master than expected, and the prospect of becoming a Super Saiyan seemed like breaking orbit with a pogo stick to her at this point. But would that really matter? Could she find contentment in being the strongest being on Koum instead? Surely she wouldn't need to compare to Grandpa Goku to defend Koum from anything that might threaten it.

She sighed and kicked her head back. Part of her was telling her she was crazy for thinking all this, and another part was shrugging and saying, "why not?" At this point, she wished something would just make the decision for her…

"Gililililil! Pan!"

Pan jumped and squealed a bit at Gill's sudden appearance. In her self-absorbed daze, she'd already only been passively aware of most living things in the area, but Gill's lack of natural ki to sense allowed him to catch her completely by surprise.

"Gill?" She responded, turning around and looking up to see him floating in the row behind her. "What's the matter? What are you doing here?"

"Gilililil, Pan leave ship abruptly!" The little robot neurotically explained himself. "Pan is friend! Gill worried! Follow Pan!"

Pan blinked once or twice, a bit surprised at what he said. Then she smiled. "It's okay, Gill," she calmed him down. "I just went for a walk because I couldn't sleep. You can stay with me, okay?"

"Gililil…" Gill seemed relieved and content with this answer. He extended his legs from his chassis, floating down to imitate Pan by sitting in the spot next to her. In Regano's seat from the other night, coincidentally.

Pan watched him, oddly curious that even a barely artificially intelligent little robot would express such concern and affection for her. How would Gill, of all people, "feel" if she were to stay behind on Koum?

She let herself focus on the moon again. Putting aside the very different and distracting presence of Koum's rings, she imagined the view wouldn't be much different than what it used to be with Earth's moon. Regano had even pointed out how one of the few things from Freeza which his people had kept intact was a small fortified outpost on the moon, since it was invaluable for scoping out visitors and invaders coming from halfway across their solar system. He'd even subsequently joked about liking Pan enough to make her a potential security risk by telling her.

Pan frowned a bit. Again, her thoughts kept circling back to Regano…

She sighed, then briskly stood back up and stretched her arms. It seemed she was actually getting tired now, at long last. With Koum's days being a full one-and-a-half times as long as Earth's, it was bound to happen eventually no matter how much her overactive brain worked against it.

"Well, Gill," she said. "Why don't we start back towards the ship now?"

"Gilililil," her mechanical companion didn't have much to say as he hopped up onto her shoulder, almost as if to ensure he didn't lose track of her again. Pan giggled lightly at him, and began leisurely strolling up the rows of seats towards the exit. With or without her company, the moon continued with its usual tasks of reflecting sunlight, causing tides, inspiring poets, and so on and so forth. As with anything or anyone just trying to mind their own business, however, things were suddenly thrown into chaos when it received some unexpected visitors.

* * *

After what was likely only minutes but felt like hours, Orris finally brought himself to move. Whether he'd remained motionless out of playing possum, or just because of his injuries, he wasn't sure. Maybe a little of both. He placed both hands against the floor and tried to push himself up, but his fractured arm, cracked ribs, assorted lacerations, and scattered burns promptly screamed at him to stop, and not try that again anytime soon. So he settled for turning his head.

He could see them on the long-range sensor readout. A veritable swarm of small landing ships, about fifty altogether, now well past the outer limits of Koum's solar system and closing in fast. At their speed, they'd be here in a matter of minutes.

He hadn't believed what the two male Earthlings told him when they approached him the day before. Zatar, a traitor? Conspiring with alien invaders? It seemed preposterous at the time, and he only refrained from telling them off and evicting them from the planet for Regano's sake. Instead he'd thanked them for the tip, told them to keep it to themselves, and went about his day as normal. But as time went on, it began to seem more plausible. He thought back to Zatar's long-standing attitude about Koum's shift towards peace, his constant pushing for more military strength, the way he seemed distracted and indifferent as he carried out his duties…

So when he personally traveled to the moon outpost to meet Zatar, who had finally returned to Koum after a long and unscheduled trip to who-knows-where, he was hopeful that it was all a big misunderstanding. Zatar had brought along a guest. A disproportionately dwarfish alien with red hair and a tough-looking face, who was none other than one of the forthcoming invaders. Realizing the Earthling's report was correct, with a heavy heart Orris had declared them both under arrest.

To say they resisted would be a gross understatement. The alien had a lot more power than his stout body would suggest, and he had taken pleasure in flaunting his swift victory over Orris by kicking him while he was down – literally kicking him across the room and laughing as he ricocheted off the walls. All the while, Zatar had taken his time disabling every system that could potentially warn the surface of danger, making sure to even destroy the main communications console with a ki blast before he and his companion departed.

Orris cursed his helplessness. Everyone on Koum was in danger, and only he knew it. Well, the Earthlings did as well, but there was still little that any of them could do against such an overwhelming force. All Orris could do was trust in Regano, and hope that the boy had leadership skills as beyond his years as his power. He just wished that he could be there to see how it all played out, or at least survive for that long, given how much blood he'd already lost. But it would take a miracle for that to happen at this point…

At that precise moment, a short, young, scruffy black-haired miracle in baggy pants and a dark blue tunic materialized from thin air right in front of him.

* * *

This was perfect. The easiest stealth job that Stout had ever pulled off.

All the stories about these Koumians said they were a strong and diligent people. But you wouldn't think so from the security inside their own palace. It was actually easier for Stout to slip inside on a lower level and work his way up than approach his target directly through a window or something. Of course, it helped that their inside man had provided such in-depth schematics of the place, with every little nook and cranny covered. Plus, these people were really lacking in technology, by choice no less, and weren't wearing scouters to spot him with. So yeah, easy.

Easy though it was, his task was still very time-sensitive. The boss and the rest of the crew were mere minutes away from the planet by now, and Stout had been sent ahead with the treacherous old advisor to carry out a very special setup mission. They'd need some sort of leverage to get the planet's young warrior prince to do what they wanted, and the advisor's intel had revealed a great option.

Seems the prince had a sweet little sister, and young and helpless family members made for downright spectacular hostages. Even better, once all was said in done, they'd have a promising new slave in their position. A highly valuable one, too, if they were ever stripped for cash. All stout had to do was sneak in, snatch her away from her room, and hoof it to a predetermined safe spot where she'd be guarded until the hurly-burly was done.

Rounding a final corner in the dimly-lit upper halls of the palace, Stout finally zeroed in on what the schematics said was the prince's room. Intel said the royal nursemaid was likely there as well, but orders were to just quickly and quietly kill her if that was the case. Simple enough. Stout took one more quick glance both ways before carefully opening the door and slipping inside.

The room was lit by nothing but the glow of the planet's moon and rings beaming in through the single large, cracked-open circular window. It only took Stout's eyes a moment to adjust, but quite a bit longer for his brain to make any sense of what he saw. The princess and the nursemaid were nowhere to be seen. In their place was a non-Koumian alien man with loosely-hanging light hair. He was comfortably leaning back in a rocking chair, and bore a sheathed sword strapped to his back.

"Hi."

* * *

Regano normally didn't mind surprises. Life on Koum was pleasant, but often boring. So having his routine unexpectedly twisted a bit now and then was welcome. But this was hardly the way he preferred it to happen.

He'd been resting in bet, finally drifting off to sleep after being up late tending to some more tedious princely duties, plus a lot of daydreaming about Pan. Gazing out his window at the rings and stars in the night sky was as relaxing as ever. At least, until a few of those stars seemed to get a lot bigger and brighter all of a sudden. Then their numbers multiplied ten times over. Then they screamed through the air and crashed down all around the area with a deafening roar.

He'd leapt from his bed immediately, and the first thing he did was dart down the hall to Prika's room. Her door was already slightly ajar, and after he burst in past it, his heart sank at what he saw. The room was empty. No sign at all of Prika or Silva, and the window was smashed.

Panicking, he jumped out the window and flew at top speed over to the military building next door, starting to see the unfolding chaos of battle begin off in all directions. The command center in the top floor was already in chaos when he entered, with soldiers rushing back and forth trying to gear up and deploy. He was immediately noticed and approached by Anise, a high-ranking female soldier. She normally assisted and answered to Orris, but seemed to be running things solo at the moment.

"Regano!" She addressed him briskly. "It's bad. We've got twenty-something small ships, landed around the island's perimeter and each carrying about a half-dozen enemy soldiers. We've got reports of the same thing in other cities across the planet, but less than here at the capitol."

"Why didn't we get any warning?" Regano asked. "How did they get past the moon outpost?"

"We don't know," Anise admitted. "The outpost is still there, but they don't respond. They must have hit it first somehow."

Regano had been glancing around while listening. "Where's Orris?"

"We… don't know that, either. Nobody's seen him since this afternoon," she reported. "But for some reason, he beefed up the patrol schedule before he disappeared."

"How fortunate that he did," said another voice all of a sudden. "Otherwise the city would most likely already be overrun."

"Zatar!" Regano exclaimed as he and Anise both turned to look. "Thank goodness you're safe. Do you have any idea what's happening here?"

"No," Zatar stoically responded. He nervously fiddled with the jeweled brooch he wore around his neck. "But perhaps Orris did if he made such preparations."

"But if he knew something was coming, why wouldn't he tell anyone?" Regano clenched his fists. "Why didn't he tell ME? I don't know what to do…"

"Prince!" Another soldier across the room called. "Some sort of audio transmission from one of the invading ships!"

Regano felt a chill. Would this be a chance for negotiation? Or merely a 'surrender or die' ultimatum? No, not likely. If these invaders were planet trade pirates like all the rest, they wouldn't be after prisoners or ransom. They'd just want to wipe the planet of its native population to increase its sale value. But this was still the first time any such group had attempted communication. Nothing to lose by seeing what it was about.

"Put it through," Regano ordered.

A hush came over the room as the signal was received, before a firm and scruffy voice rang through the room's communications console.

"Good evening. Who's listening?"

"I'm Regano, Prince of Planet Koum," Regano spoke up as bravely as he could. "Who are you, and why are you here?"

"Come on, Princey, I think that's obvious," the voice chuckled. "But my name is Quint, and I'm the man in command of all your new guests. Don't worry, they're all under orders not to track mud inside your homes."

"Why did you contact us?" Regano didn't appreciate the man's humor.

"Well, I was pretty lucky to get you personally so quickly," Quin replied. Because I'd like to propose something to you. Something that'd get this all over with much more quickly."

"Go on."

"See, I'm somewhat of a big name in my line of work," Quint bragged. "And I haven't gained my fame by just sitting back and dishing out orders, oh no. I get right down there in the thick of it along with my boys. In fact, I usually do them a favor by personally tackling the biggest threats in the field."

Regano felt his stomach sink. He could see where this was going.

"So I want us to have a good old fashioned duel to the death. Just you against me, in a location away from the rest of the fighting," he explained. "The winner survives to help tip the scales in his side's favor. What do you think?"

Regano didn't let it be that easy. "Why should I?" He asked. "I could just head out and help my people, and come after you with reinforcements later."

"I guess you could do that," Quint mused in obvious mock bewilderment. "Though not only would it be a lot less fun, but it could spell some really bad news for your friends and family too."

Regano's heart sank, and he gritted his teeth. That explained Prika's disappearance. He already hated this bastard.

"There's a rocky beach on the Northwestern side of your island," Quint explained. "I'll be waiting there with bells on, Princey." His voice jumped as he seemed to remember something. "Oh, that whole friends in family thing? Be sure to come alone. And be quick, too. I might get the wrong message if I'm left waiting too long."

* * *

"What the hell is going on here?"

Unfortunately, the tall and burly thug in the black and red armor was now quite unconscious and unable to answer Pan's question. Looks like she'd put a little too much _oomph_ in that kick to his head. Letting go of his collar and letting him drop to the ground, she instead looked around for anyone else who might fill her in. It didn't take long.

A pair of Koumian soldiers, obviously younger recruits, had been cornered by a full foursome of the invaders. Seems they'd started fighting two-on-two, only for the dirtbags to get some backup and turn the tables on them. Well, time to turn them back.

An opening with a surprise face-plant slam from behind, followed by two high kicks and a palm to the face. Just like that, the four aliens were down for the count. The guards stood in awe of Pan as she turned to them and spoke.

"The heck's happening?"

The soldiers visibly calmed once they recognized her. "Oh," one said. "It's you…"

"Yeah, I'm me," Pan said, then pointed to the unconscious shmoes on the ground around her. "But who are these guys?"

"Planet trade pirates," the other explained. "I recognize the colors, too. They're a pretty infamous group."

"Planet trade?" Pan questioned. Like that Freeza guy she'd been told so much about?

"Koum's the type of planet to attract these scum," said the first soldier, now much braver and giving a slight kick to one of the slumped bodies. "We've learned to be prepared, but somehow they got the jump on us this time."

Pan grimaced. Of all the lousy things to happen. She and Gill had been most of the way back to the ship when suddenly bright lights came crashing down all over the place and everything went to hell. Before she knew it, she found herself jumping in and helping out the guards and townsfolk by beating up these space invaders at every turn.

Gill then decided to come out of hiding, just as he'd done the last three times Pan had entered combat, chirping his anxious little 'Gilililil' noises as he came to rest on Pan's shoulder. Suddenly, Pan took notice of something, and whipped her head around to stare off in that direction, knocking the neurotic little robot off-balance.

"Hey," she spoke to the guards again, who were now almost rhythmically taking turns kicking the KO'd thugs. "What's Regano doing?"

"The prince?" One blinked. "No idea. We've been out on patrol for hours already. He was probably asleep."

Pan's focus remained off to the Northwest. She'd sensed Regano take off from the vicinity of the palace at full power, and was now moving towards the opposite end of the island in a hurry. Pan had no idea why, but she would find out.

"Gill!" She called him to attention from his impromptu spot on the ground. "Keep going back to the ship. Wake up Trunks and Grandpa and get them out here to help!"

"Gilililil," he piped up, seeming to switch on his own bravery circuits in light of his mission. "Gill will go! Get help for Pan!" He quickly retracted his legs into his chassis and hovered away with as much speed as his little antigravity units could muster.

Pan, on the other hand, had no problem when it came to speed. She pushed off from the ground, kicking up dust and almost causing the two shocked guards to fall on their rears. Once above the rooftops, she angled herself to the Northwest, where she could sense Regano having just arrived to meet several other relatively strong powers. She positioned herself to blast off, and would no doubt reach him in no time flat…

When suddenly, a shriek of terror echoed from down below. Pan looked down, and despite the pale moonlight quickly traced the scream to a young woman carrying a baby. She'd been pursued to a small, dead-end alleyway, and the only thing standing between her and a full troupe of five invaders was a single, frail-looking old soldier.

"Ugh!" Pan groaned as she rocketed straight towards the five thugs. "Come on!"

* * *

The Western beach of Koum's capitol island was somewhat less habitable than elsewhere. The beach was nearly as much rock as sand, and little else but some dry and spindly ferns could grow there. The scattered boulders and steep cliffs separating it from the main island's grassy hills made it difficult to carry out anything worthwhile in day-to-day life. But it made a for a great battleground.

It wasn't difficult for Regano to spot the large, elliptical landing craft resting just off the shore, and his foe waiting patiently right next to it. Quint's appearance was much what Regano had expected; he was reasonably tall and muscular, with a gruff and angular face bearing some sort of cybernetic implant atop a sizable scar on his forehead. A pair of small, triangular ears adorned the sides of his head, with a large patch of bright red, bristly hair flaring up from his crown and matching the armored jacket he wore. He stood with his arms folded in confidence, as he took notice of Regano up above him.

"So you showed up alone after all," Quint declared. "Good boy. I knew you would."

Regano landed, saying nothing in return yet. He'd come prepared, donning his personal caped battle armor and the best weighted blade in the royal armory on his back. He stoically studied his opponent, trying his best to gauge his strength. He was confident in his own power and skill, but wasn't certain it would be an easy victory. At the very least, it seemed this 'Quint' was honorable enough to keep his promise of a one-on-one fight…

"Let's get this done with," Regano insisted.

"Right, right," Quint replied. Then he suddenly put two fingers to his lips and let loose a piercing whistle. "Come on out, boys!" From within the vessel emerged two more figures, evidently waiting until now for their leader's signal, and Regano was taken aback at the sight of them.

The pair were vastly different in size and build. One was a squat and lumbering tub of what was, presumably, half-fat and half-muscle, and the other was skinny as a post and stood a full three heads taller than Quint. But those "three heads" were where the differences ended and similarities began. They both had the exact same head and face. The exact same as Quint himself.

"How's the old saying go? If you want a job right, you've got to do it yourself." Quint grinned, and gestured to the two as they reached his side. "Princey, meet Slim and Girth. My clones."

"Heeeeey kid, niiice to meet yooouuu," Slim greeted him in a frail but cocky voice, his words elongated in about the creepiest manner possible.

"Koum's prince is jus' some punk?" Girth burped a bit as he spoke. "This'll be fun."

"They cost a helluva lot to have grown, but they're worth every last Gamet," Quint explained. "Each modified to have a different specialty in battle, as you're about to find out firsthand."

"What?" Regano was unsure what to make of this, but focused on the most important part. "But, you said you would fight…"

"What, all by myself? A one-on-one battle?" Quint laughed heartily, and the other two mimicked it exactly. "No, if you'll recall, my exact words were 'you versus me.' And I just happen to have three of me."

"You," Regano gnashed his teeth. This battle just became a lot more difficult. "You monster..."

"Aw, Princey, you seem angry," Quint mocked him. "Absolutely beside yourself… No, wait, that's me." He guffawed once more, his clones following suit. "Haha…" his laughter quickly faded out. "Alright, let's kill him."

All three Quints jumped forward, with the original charging Regano head-on while Slim and Girth flanked him on each side. Regano reacted quickly, jumping backwards and shooting a ki blast where he'd been standing. The small explosion kicked up a cloud of sand, which Regano hoped would provide some momentary cover.

Unfortunately, it didn't really work. Slim's long arms gave him exceptional reach, and he got hold of Regano's ankle even from within the sand cloud. Regano was swung sideways, face-first into Girth's waiting gut. That part didn't really hurt, nor did falling onto his back after. What did hurt, a lot, was the downward punch to the gut from Quint a split second later.

"Gaaah!" Regano gritted his teeth, trying not to let the pain slow him down. He thrust out one foot, both driving a kick to one of Quint's shins while also pushing himself out of harm's way. He spun around as he slid across the sand, righting himself into a three-point crouch on solid ground.

In all honesty, that wasn't as bad as he'd expected. Starting on the defensive had paid off, and Regano had a good impression of the trio's power now. At least for Quint, judging from that blow. Hopefully the clones wouldn't be too different.

While Quint was recovering from Regano's "low blow," the two clones had taken positions much like before, seeming intent on repeating the same attack pattern should Regano try to evade them again. He wouldn't, but he'd let them think so.

He reached out and shot another ki blast into the sand. But this time he jumped forward into it, aiming at Slim. The grapple from last time was reversed as Regano took hold of Slim's ankle while passing him. Regano planted his feet and swung Slim around, not only making his head smack Quint in the chest on his way, but ending up crashing directly into the back of Girth's vulnerable knees. Regano let go of Slim, allowing his lardy counterpart to fall rear-first right on top of him.

The two clones were out of the way for now, but Quint had already recovered and jumped at Regano. But the prince saw it coming, and acted quickly. His arms still up near his shoulder from the throw, he quickly snapped loose his cape, then threw it upwards right into Quint's face. The lead thug was blinded only for a moment before tearing it away, but that was enough. His cleared line of sight was immediately filled with the blunt weighted end of Regano's weapon zeroing in on his face.

Quint flew backwards from the impact, skidding along the sand until colliding back-first against one of the many boulders dotting the beach. While he grasped his face and spewed some foul language around, Regano focused back on Slim and Girth. The latter had bounced high into the air, barreling down with arms oustretched, hoping to pin Regano under his great weight. An admirable try.

Regano leapt up, moving more quickly than Girth ever could, and vaulted himself over the fat clone's shoulders. Crouching on his back and placing a hand on the back of his head, Regano pushed down and converted Girth's body slam attempt into a brutal face plant. In that same motion, he went into a handstand, thrusting both feet upwards to kick the approaching Slim in the jaw.

Regano arced through the air, flipping once before landing a short distance from his opponents. All three took some time to recover from that last little exchange, and Quint spoke up while quelling a bloody nose.

"Not bad, Princey," he congratulated. "Your strength is as impressive as all the stories say." Satisfied with his nose, he paused to crack some joints. "But so is ours."

With that, Quint braced himself and shouted, pumping himself up and surfacing his power in full. Slim and Girth did the same, and the burst of energy from all three kicked up and then blew away a cloud of sand. A moment later, they stood ready again for battle, a fierce ki aura crackling around each of them.

Regano studied them for a moment, before cracking a smile. His weapon still gripped in one hand, he slammed the weighted end into the rock face he stood on, the ki he imbued within it causing it to embed itself rather than breaking. The two plated gloves he wore also made their own sizable cracks in the rock when he removed and dropped them.

Now free of any extra encumberment, Regano cracked his knuckles and likewise prepared to get serious. He casually reached over and retrieved his weapon, before lighting tossing it up and down with a twirl or two.

Suddenly, he threw it. Moving faster than any of his foes could react to, the weighted end streaked through the air directly at Quint and struck him square in the chest. It carried him backwards at breakneck speed and rammed him into the side of his own ship. The entire vessel lurched backwards from the impact, almost capsizing entirely before crashing back down on its landing struts.

Slim and Girth didn't even have time to comprehend what happened before Regano was on top of them. He appeared out of nowhere directly in between them, and with amazing strength he grasped Girth by one of his sausage-like arms and heaved him up over his head. Jumping upwards, he flung Girth and all his size and weight down, once again sending him crashing upon his own teammate.

Regano finished the throw just in time to turn around and catch Quint closing back in, bearing Regano's own weapon against him. Quint wielded it like a simple club, swinging it down to bear on Regano, who easily crossed his arms over his chest and absorbed most of the impact. Quint then showed some skill as he tried to twirl the bladed end upwards to slash at his prey, but Regano easily avoided it. He simply slipped to one side, grabbed the weapon firmly with both hands, then pushed out a kick into Quint's gut. Quint was knocked back and stunned, losing his grip on the weapon.

Yet again Regano remained standing and no worse for the wear, while his trio of enemies were left to momentarily lick their wounds. He floated confidently, still grasping his weapon firmly and ready to counter any further attack.

"Guh," Quint caught his breath. "You're really annoying, you know that?" He smiled. "And stronger than I thought. But I thought you might be. It won't matter before long."

"Because you'll be dead," Regano declared.

"No, not quite. See, as powerful as you are," Quint explained. "It's not by so much that we can't overcome you with strength in numbers. And I've got two more clones who'd just jump at the chance to help make that happen."

Regano winced a little. He hated to admit it, but Quint was right. Regano was trying his best and managing so far to wear these three down while preserving his own energy. But turning those three opponents into five would definitely tip the scales too far in their favor for comfort.

"Well, to be honest, one of them, my intel boy Stout, is already preoccupied guarding your precious little sister until we're done with you and ready for her," Quint said, noticing and loving Regano's intense scowl. "But we won't even need him, because the other guy, Bulk… he's special."

He broke out a devious, full-toothed grin. "He's the only one one of the four clones who's actually _stronger_ than me." He held up two fingers in a pinching gesture. "And not just a little bit like me to these guys or you to me, oh no. He's way, WAY stronger. 'One-hit-kill' stronger."

Regano furled his brow and swallowed. True or false, last resort or bluff, that was still an unnerving claim. And it was all the more reason to wrap this up quickly.

"He's already under orders to come here," Quint finished up. "Just as soon as he finishes a very special little mission of his own…"

* * *

Quite some distance from all the pandemonium within and around the city, a small and unassuming ship sat quietly upon the sandy beach of a nearby minor island. The eight thin landing struts it was perched upon kept it out of reach of the currently receding high tide, but right now it was in danger of more than just potential rust.

A powerfully hulking figure stomped his way across the beach, eyeing this vulnerable little target. He honestly found it hard to believe that such a frail and ridiculous looking craft would carry anyone who could be a threat, but he had his orders nonetheless. The crew were said to be Saiyans, of all things, and Saiyans could be unpredictably powerful, especially on full-mooned nights. So his orders were to take them all out before they could get involved, and he was just fine with that.

While still some distance away, Bulk could see little more than a dim light emanating from the main hull's round windows. He reached up with his left hand and activated the scouter he wore over his left eye and ear. A few seconds of beeps later, and he had power readings. Four in total, and the strongest one was only at around 5000.

He snorted at the pathetic levels. Oddly, the intel only reported three Saiyans and a robot, but the fourth was probably just a slave that never left the ship or something. Didn't matter; they were all about to die anyway. Bulk raised up an enormous arm, aiming his palm at the big round body of the ship, and easily let loose a single large ki blast. It lit up the entire beach as it streaked forward with enough power to reduce the ship to smoking scrap.

But all of a sudden, only a few meters away, it was knocked off course. Something or someone seemed to appear out of thin air and redirect the blast, sending it out towards the open ocean. The flash of the distant explosion quickly gave way to the moonlight, but allowed the gigantic attack to get a good glimpse of the interloper.

He was obviously one of the Saiyans, judging from his fit build and jet-black hair and eyes. But he was just a small boy. Yet in spite of his youth and being small enough to stand on Bulk's palm, he seemed incredibly poised as he smiled and spoke.

"Please don't' blow up our ship," Goku said. "Bulma would kill me." Then his own eyes adjusted, and he got a good look at his visitor's face. "Hey," he noted as he looked up and down. "Ain't I seen you before? You got a lot bigger, though."

"I see," the large on chuckled, then spoke with a surprising amount of class despite his brutish appearance. "You must have glimpsed one of the other clones. No, I'm quite different. You see, I've been engineered to stand far above the others, and even the original, in power and ability."

"Clones?" Goku folded his arms and tilted his head. "Huh… I don't really get it."

"Well, young one, you don't have too. I'm in a hurry to dispatch you so I may lend assistance to my progenitor in battle. So what you don't understand won't matter when you're dead."

Goku's confidence quickly returned. "Nah," he disagreed. "I'll beat you without even moving."

Bulk broke out in a hearty laugh. "You are a feisty one, aren't you? Seems like whatever trick you pulled to deflect my earlier attack has gotten to your head." He walked over to Goku, whose crazy hair didn't even reach the knees of the behemoth looming over him. "But I'll still humor you, by sending you to the next world with my full power!"

Shouting those last words, he lurched forward, a bright ki aura bursting into view around him as he brought a single gigantic fist crashing down towards Goku's head. He channeled all his power into it, intending to simply squash the tiny Saiyan where he stood.

His smile never fading and his arms remaining folded, Goku simply looked up, and momentarily widened his eyes into a glare. From those eyes shot forth a focused shockwave of ki, invisible but incredibly powerful. It struck Bulk's jaw with ten times more force than his own in-progress blow, and a second later the oversized hunk of muscle was out cold on the ground.

That done, Goku walked over a few paces and grasped the sleeping giant by one of his monstrous calves. Again summoning some extra power, he bodily lifted up and swung Bulk around a few times, before letting go and heaving him off into the distance. At that angle, he'd land on one of the main island's beaches. Probably.

Dusting off his hands, Goku took steady flight, hovering around to the back of the ship and entering normally through the main hatch instead of teleporting out like a minute before. As he entered the upper deck's main room, he was energetically greeted by one of his more welcome guests.

"Heeey!" Prika ran up to him more excited than she'd ever been, and that was saying something. She stood eye-to-eye with him, her own peepers glimmering with awe. "That was cool!"

"Ah, you saw that, huh?" Goku answered, smiling.

She nodded. "We were watching out the window!" She paused, and pointed over to elsewhere in the room. "Well, not Orris, 'cause he's stuck on the floor."

Indeed Orris was 'stuck on the floor,' resting and blanketed upon one of the Earthling crew's extra futons. Silva was seated by his side, having spent much of the last few hours treating his injuries and doting on him. They both likewise perked up when Goku entered the room.

"That was amazing," Silva echoed Prika's praise. "just how strong was that guy?"

"Uh, I dunno," Goku scratched his temple. "I wasn't payin' that much attention." He glanced at Orris. "Sorry again I didn't get to you earlier. I didn't realize somethin' was happening until all these guys were already pretty close to the planet. How're you holdin' up?"

"I'll be fine, don't worry," Orris replied, and managed a sincere smile towards his pint-sized rescuer. "Getting out of there alive was already more than I expected." The smile quickly faded and was replaced with a look of concern. "I should be out helping my men, though. I wish I at least knew how the defense was progressing…"

"It seems to be going okay," said a new voice. Trunks suddenly entered through the same door as Goku a moment before. "It looks like your putting those extra troops on duty is really paying off, especially with Pan as their unexpected backup." He looked at Silva. "Sorry about the window."

"What window?"

"Gilililil!" Last but not least, Gill dashed into the room from behind, expectedly freaking the hell out for no reason. "Goku! Trunks! Pan sent Gill! Danger! Danger!"

"Look who I met on the way back," Trunks said. Prika immediately took a liking to Gill and began chasing him around the room while giggling, upsetting his anxious little processors even more.

"I can't believe Zatar would go to such an extreme," Orris spoke up with a sigh. "I should have seen it coming myself, too. He's never been too fond of the way things have changed from the old days under Freeza. We always wrote it off as just being stubborn, since he still served so dutifully in spite of it, but…" He turned his head to look at Goku and Trunks. "I'm sorry for doubting you. Even now, you're still doing so much for us."

"Don't worry about it," Trunks consoled him. "Some things you just can't see coming." He glanced at Goku. "Like when you almost collide with some gigantic unconscious freak in mid-air."

"What about Pan?" Silva inquired, noting who was missing. "Is she out there fighting? Will she be alright on her own?"

"Ah, she can handle herself just fine," Goku said, staring off into space. "I'm just glad you guys are both okay." He looked at Silva. "Especially you."

She blinked a bit. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well," Goku mused. "I ain't never teleported a pregnant lady before. I hoped it wouldn't hurt your baby or nothing."

"…What?!"

* * *

"No!"

Quint's protest did little to improve things for him. The battle was not unfolding nearly as well as he'd planned, according to the last ten minutes of beating he and his clone compatriots received. The prince remained one step ahead of them all the while, remaining silent and serious as his underestimated strength let him wear down all three of them at once.

Finally, just now, Regano had singled out and delivered the coup de grace to Slim – easily side-stepping one of the wiry clone's punches, he'd snatched Slim's arm and brought his own knee and his weapon's weight against it. Slim wailed in agony as his arm was snapped like a twig in two places, but it didn't stop there. Regano twisted the arm and its two new joints like a whip as he threw Slim down against the ground. From the looks of it, Slim was decidedly out of the fight.

Enraged, Quint and Girth both charged headfirst at the prince, but he charged right back. Quint was faster and closer, and so he received a fist smashed directly into his face. He heard a low and stern "you wait" as he was sent careening backwards. Regano turned around, and before anyone could realize what he was doing, he held and spun the bladed end of his weapon around. The next moment, that blade was lodged firmly within Girth's chest. The pudgy copy didn't have opportunity to go into shock or anything, as Regano immediately sent him tumbling yet again onto his long-limbed partner.

Neither Girth nor Slim were allowed much time to suffer, for no sooner had Girth made his graceless face-first landing than Regano took action again. He quickly re-attached his weapon to its holding place on his back, and raised both his free hands up above his head. For the first time in the battle, a bright ki aura flashed into view around him, and was focused into his hands.

Regano then cut loose, and with a shout he began to repeatedly throw blast after blast down on the beach, directly upon and around the crippled forms of Slim and Girth. Both they and the landscape were torn to pieces by the merciless volley, and Quint could do little but duck and cover from the deafening series of explosions.

A few small seconds later, and the chaos subsided. There was no sign of Slim or Girth any more, only a large compounded series of holes in the ground where they had once lay. Seawater began to noisily flow in and fill them up, while doing little to extinguish most of the scattered brush that was now on fire. The flames cast a dim red glow over the area, and illuminated Regano's form as he walked through the smoke towards Quint at a menacingly confident pace.

"Now it really is just you and me," he proclaimed.

Quint tried his best to work through the first genuine fear he'd felt in years, and jumped forward to attack Regano again. Regano easily swayed and caught Quint's punched, grabbed his other arm to hold him, and then slammed a knee up into the pirate captain's gut.

"Don't be so eager to join them," Reegano ordered, giving Quint a brief moment to stop gagging. "I need some answers from you first."

He let go of Quint's punching arm, and pulled him up into the air by the other before delivering a solid punch to the jaw. "How did you get past our moon outpost?!" He yelled as Quint went tumbling backwards. Quint landed in a kneel after a few rolls, and threw an overhead ki blast at his newound interrogator. But Regano simply smacked it away in mid-flight then closed in and drove a knee into Quint's face. While Quint was stunned, Regano grasped him by one arm, and pulled it up high while twisting him around, pinning him face-down in the sand with a foot pressed against his back.

"Start talking," Regano demanded. "Did you have someone helping you? Or did you sabotage it from a distance somehow?"

"Rrrngh," Quint protested. "Go to hell!"

Regano was silent for a moment. Then while not loosening his grip, he reached his free hand around behind him. He suddenly unleashed a powerful beam of ki, which streaked out and struck Quint's ship still resting by the water line. The vessel exploded in a giant fireball, scattering melted slag across the beach. Quint couldn't see it from his spot on the ground, but he still knew well enough what had just happened.

"I'd considered letting you flee the planet once you answered me," Regano offered obviously false sympathy. "But I see no reason to now." He pressed a little harder on Quint's back with his foot, and reached up with his free hand to grasp his weapon.

"Alright, alright!" Quint seemed to give in. "You… you were right," he explained. "I had a connection here on your planet. Someone who shut down the equipment on the moon for us!"

"Who?"

"It was those alien visitors of yours!" He insisted, sounding so sure of himself that you'd think he'd practiced the confession. "They said they needed something here, but you were being stingy about it. Said they wanted to just take it instead."

For a fraction of a moment, Regano feared that his telling Pan about the moon base had actually brought this about. But he shoved those thoughts clear out of his head by the time Quint resumed his babbling.

"We were supposed to be a distraction while they stole whatever they were after," he said. "They're probably going after it right now. I could help you stop them, if you-"

"Enough," Regano barked, twisting Quint's arm to provoke instant silence. Regano then calmly took his weapon from his back, and had his turn to speak.

"You might not know this, but my people have quite a brutal and violent history," he lectured. "In my studies, I've learned that a common practice in war was to cut off one of your fallen enemy's ears and take it home as a trophy." He slowly brought the blade down to the back of Quint's head. "Larger ears were once considered a sign of virility, you see. So even if your foe lived, his lost ear would be a sign of his defeat and shame."

With that last line, he ever-so-slightly touched the blade's tip to Quint's left ear. "If you're not going to be honest with me, and I'll have to fight more people like you from now on, then perhaps I should start a collection myself…"

"N-nooo! Wait! I'm sorry!" Quint shouted in protest. "I'll tell you the truth."

"I hope so, for your sake," Regano said, deciding to be merciful. He let go of Quint and stepped back. "You've only got two ears and one head, so you get three tries."

"Okay, I get it," Quint pleaded. "It… it was one of your people. Someone pretty close to you, too." He took a moment to catch his breath. "It was th-URGHK!"

With no warning, there was a quick flash of light as a thin ki beam shot right through Quint's chest, piercing his heart. His eyes were wide open in shock, and he could only silently mouth two short final words as he lurched forward and fell face-first towards the ground. Regano reached out and caught him, but it was too late to do anything. He was dead.

Regano rapidly looked back and forth, trying to deduce where the beam had come from. He couldn't tell the exact direction since Quint had fallen over, but from the way he'd been standing, it had to have come from the East behind him, above the cliffs and toward the mainland of the island. Regano frowned. It was obvious what had happened. Quint's contact was keeping tabs on the battle somehow, and decided to abruptly end their partnership before he was exposed.

Still glancing around and moving carefully, Regano walked a short distance South along the beach, going around a jutting cliff face and leaning against a large rock. Thus he was sufficiently shielded from the assassin's sight, and allowed himself a few minutes to cool down and think. Quint hadn't managed to drop a name, but he'd still said more than enough. If the conspirator was really listening, then he'd know that, too. That meant he'd have to come after Regano as well.

So Regano waited for him.

* * *

Pan dusted her hands off, standing tall and looking at the quartet of alien pirates in a crumpled and battered heap before her, and turned around to the shaky old Koumian woman they'd so bravely cornered and attempted to turn into a hostage. Once affirming that she would be okay now and seeing a Koumian guardsman heading this way, Pan finally took off again. She'd steadily made her way across the island's city, but having to constantly stop and help citizens and soldiers in distress had slowed her down considerably. Yet at long last, that little exchange had been on the outskirts of the city, and was the last sign of any life between Pan and the Western beach where she could still sense Regano. She kicked her flight speed up a notch, heading straight in that direction.

The three ki which Regano was fighting before had now all disappeared, most likely meaning that he'd won the fight. Not surprising, since she could tell that his power was quite a bit greater than any of theirs. But what concerned her now was the new fourth ki signal, which had reached the area halfway through the fight. It had kept its distance until the action was over, but was now bearing down on Regano… and it was much stronger than him.

* * *

"Zatar!" Regano exclaimed.

Regano had sat and waited patiently, hiding from sight while listening and watching for signs of the assassin, or of anyone else. A moment ago, his fine-tuned Koumian ears heard steady footprints approaching the nook in the cliffside in which he was hidden. His weapon re-drawn and at the ready, he'd identified the visitor just in time to avoid attacking.

Zatar showed little reaction beyond simply looking Regano over. "So," he surmised. "It seems you won your duel with Quint."

"It was… more complicated than expected," Regano nodded. "But it could have been worse."

"Indeed it could have," Zatar confirmed, looking away from Regano and out towards the still-smoking battleground. "I'm surprised you fared so well on your own against such an infamously powerful foe. You must be stronger than I gave you credit for."

"And smarter."

Zatar turned back around. Regano had not disarmed himself, and he now glared at his elder with confident and reproachful eyes.

"Only an experience Koumian warrior could both hear and kill from such a distance. But you weren't quick enough," Regano explained. "Quint's breath was cut off before he could give me a name, but I could still read his lips." He frowned. "He said 'old man.'"

Zatar stared at him pensively. "I see…"

"Why did you do it, Zatar?" Regano demanded, becoming visibly flustered. "You've faithfully served my family all your life, and have done so much good for our people and world! Why would you betray us all like this?"

Zatar didn't respond, and instead just stared off into space, seeming lost in thought.

"I'm sorry, Zatar," Regano declared, still clutching and extending his weapon. "But such treason must be answered for. I'm taking you back to the palace so you can be dealt with."

There was naught but more silence for a few more seconds, before Zatar finally spoke up.

"Frankly, I'm disappointed," he stated. "Not just in Quint. But in you even more."

"What?"

"That strength of yours is a testament to your heritage. If things were different, I'd be proud of you." He turned around. "But it's wasted on you, just like it was on your father. Squandered defending a status quo of weakness and mediocrity."

"Wasted? What are you talking about?" Regano protested. "Zatar, are you really this stuck on the old ways? After all this time, why would you throw away everything, just to go backwards to-"

"Backwards?!" Zatar suddenly lashed out, leaping with surprising strength and speed to grasp Regano by the neck and lift him off the ground. Regano was taken aback by the alarming amount of power the old man possessed, and dropped his weapon as he futilely tried to wrest himself free from Zatar's grip.

"You know nothing! You weren't even alive back then. You were never witness to Lord Freeza's awe-inspiring majesty and power. The authority he commanded, the hundreds of planets which bowed to his rule!" Zatar glared at Regano, who was struggling to breathe. "Your grandfather and I were kindred spirits. We once dreamed of expanding Koum's influence to even a tenth of Lord Freeza's brilliance, but with him gone, it was all up to me."

He flung Regano off to one side, sending him skipping across the sand and tumbling to a stop on the beach. As Regano tried to return to his feet, Zatar walked over and continued to berate him. "I've tried to use my position to steer this world back to glory. But your father was too much of a worthless pacifist to realize our potential. Even after I dealt with him, the seeds of weakness he planted in you took root too deeply. I finally realized I had to be more direct." He reached Regano, and glanced towards the smoking remains of Quint's ship in the distance. "Those imbeciles thought I was giving them a planet, but in reality, they were giving me the opportunity to take it for myself."

You," Regano sputtered. "You're insane!"

"No, I merely have ambition, something I must re-teach this world." Zatar's aged and spindly frame somehow managed to loom over the prince. "The people will believe that you fell in battle, and that your sister was snatched away in the night. Then I'll be next in line to rule." He paused for a moment. "But then again… Prika is still very young and impressionable. If you will not turn to my side, perhaps she will."

"No!" Regano leapt up, and with both hands instantly formed and threw a large ki blast directly at Zatar, point-blank. A single large explosion blew away another entire mass of the sand below them, and kicked up a huge cloud of smoke and sand.

Regano paused for a moment, breathing heavily. He suspected he couldn't kill Zatar with such an attack, not with such a difference in strength between them. But if he'd managed to at least wound him, then perhaps now in the aftermath…

No good. Zatar burst forth from the cloud of smoke, all but unscathed by the blast, and delivered a powerful right hook to Regano's head which knocked him down. The prince groaned in pain and desperately tried to right himself, but he just fell back down onto his side, dizzy from the blow. Zatar took advantage, planting a foot on Regano's chest to pin him to the ground.

"Only now, in your last moments, have you seen what true power is like," Zatar lectured him. "Power forged over a true warrior's lifetime, and suitable for nothing less than a conqueror." He extended an arm, aiming his palm directly at Regano's face. "And soon, I'll have a whole _new_ lifetime to grow even stronger…"

Regano continued to struggle fruitlessly against Zatar's grip, failing to even budge the old man's deceptively skinny leg. He clenched his eyes shut, wincing in mental preparation for the ki blast certainly about to engulf his head and end his life. He didn't expect things to end like this, and all he could think of is how he wished he could see Pan one last time.

Suddenly, he did.

In the blink of an already-closed eye, Regano felt a sharp jolt, and then Zatar's weight upon him was swiftly gone. He opened his eyes to see Pan, standing aside him and dressed in loose-fitting pajamas. Regano was simultaneously glad and dismayed to see her. For as much as she was a sight for sore eyes, she was now in every bit as much danger as he was.

"Pan!" He exclaimed. He pushed himself up to his feet, and glanced around. Zatar was somehow a dozen meters away and on his back. From the looks of it, Pan had somehow caught him off-guard and knocked him away. But it wouldn't last, Regano knew. He had to get them both away.

"Hey," Pan asked. "What's going on here? I felt you fighting three other guys, and once I finally get here, Zatar's attacking you?"

"You _felt_ it?" Regano was puzzled, but quickly snapped out of it. "Listen, we have to get out of here! Zatar is-"

"Even more disappointed," the old man cut in. He had regained his footing, and started walking calmly back to the two of them, addressing Pan. "You're supposed to be dead, brat. Quint's failures continue to pile up."

"Say what?" Pan folded her arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Zatar's a traitor," Regano hastily explained. "He organized this whole invasion." He grabbed Pan's hand, and tried to pull her in the opposite direction. "Listen, I'll try to hold him off as long as I can," he pleaded. "You need to run back to the city, and report everything so that-"

He stopped when he noticed that Pan was already looking that way, and Zatar was no longer behind her. Regano faced forward to see Zatar in their path, evidently thanks to speed which matched his incredible strength.

"You'll report nothing," he declared. "The people will be no more suspicious of both of you falling in battle together." He glanced at Pan. "A pity about your planet's fate, but at least I'll make sure those Dragon Balls are still put to good use."

"For real? That's your deal, to screw over your own people, take over the planet, and steal our Dragon Balls?" Pan seemed more annoyed at him than threatened. "Wow, you suck."

"I hope your childish insults gave you some comfort in your last moments," Zatar grunted. Then with a burst of power, he pushed forward to deal out a powerful punch. Regano panicked, and tried to push himself around to get between Pan and the crippling blow careening straight for her.

Imagine his surprise when Pan effortlessly caught Zatar's fist, used it to pull him in close, and then socked him in the jaw.

Zatar was sent spinning through the air like a deflating balloon. His feet were first to make contact on the sand, but he by no means stuck his landing and continued tumbling backwards. He eventually splashed face-first into the waist-deep water, which finally brought him to a halt.

As the elderly would-be usurper sputtered and coughed, Regano was rendered speechless. Pan turned around and noticed his bewildered look. Then she noticed his array of light burns, bruises, and cuts as well, and became concerned.

"Hey, are you okay?" She asked him rather casually given the situation.

"Am I… what?" Regano was still slack-jawed. "Pan, what was that?"

"Me saving your butt," Pan smirked. "Don't worry about it."

"Enough!" Zatar, having waded out of the water, made his opinion on this change of pace known by thrusting out a single arm and launching a fierce and focused beam of ki directly at the two teenage interlopers. The blast kicked up profuse amounts of both water and sand as it streaked towards them at high speed.

"Look out!" Since Pan's back was turned, Regano saw the blast coming first. But despite his panic, she seemed unworried. She turned partially back around, and with one arm she seemed to merely push the blast off-course. It bolted off at a new angle over the water, and made contact with a small island which was off in the distance. Emphasis on 'was.'

"Oops," Pan remarked. "I hope that island wasn't important." She looked at Regano again. "So the old guy was behind all this? He let these invader guys in to attack?"

"Y-yes…" Regano answered her. "They tried to pin the blame on you and your family, too."

"Are you kidding?" Pan faced Zatar again. "You REALLY suck."

Zatar was angered even further now, and he rushed forward again, putting much more effort into his attacks now as he tried to blitz Pan. He threw a maddened flurry of both kicks and punches, demonstrating an impressive amount of martial arts skill fitting for a lifelong war veteran. But against Pan's far superior power and speed, it didn't matter, and she effortlessly blocked or parried every single one while jumping circles around him.

After only a few seconds, she turned things around. She vaulted herself over one of his punches, cartwheeling in the air and landing behind him. By the time he turned around, she was already on top of him and launching an assault of her own. While still holding back an immense percentage of her full power, she landed half a dozen quick punches on his face and torso, before knocking him in the chin with an upwards kick. He went rolling backwards yet again, and lay there on the sand for a moment before struggling back to his feet.

"This… this is impossible," Zatar was having an episode over this unforeseen turn of events, grunting through blood-tainted teeth. "No Saiyan is supposed to be this strong. This power even far eclipses Lord Freeza's!" Suddenly his eyes opened wide. "Unless… no, it can't be. You're too young to have been the one rumored to have defeated him. The Super Saiyan!"

"Pfft," Pan crossed her arms and kicked some sand in depressed self- frustration. "No…"

"Whatever you are, you haven't won. Not yet," Zatar proclaimed. He reached down the collar of his now-damp upper robe, and from within it produced the glass amulet he habitually wore around his neck. He held it up with two fingers for his young opponents to view. "Do you see this, young prince?" He inquired. "This amulet is a relic from our planet's glorious past, a gift from your grandfather when he became king and took me as his trusted adviser."

He then crushed it in his hand.

"It… is a container for its holder's power," he explained, his voice beginning to tremble. "For decades, it has been storing away my power, by small portions at a time." He began to breath heavily, and his limbs started to shake. "I never thought… I would have to unleash it… against children…"

Regano watched in horror, as before his eyes, Zatar's frail and thin frame began to grow impressively substantial muscles upon it, and a faint deep purple glow enveloped his entire body.

Regano spoke to Pan again. "He's getting even stronger, isn't he?" He made an obvious guess, then turned to look at her. "Do you think you can still handle him?"

For the first time since she'd arrived, Pan's expression was every bit as worried as Regano's.

"Uh-oh," she said.

* * *

Meanwhile, quite some distance from the battle, peace and quiet had returned to the Earthling ship, in a tense and anxious sort of way. Prika had finally fallen asleep, and Orris was trying to resist doing the same despite Silva's insistence. Goku was still seated while Trunks got comfortable leaning against a wall, and the two of them were creeping Silva and Orris out a bit as they simply stayed still and kept track of Pan's ki. Just now, Trunks had suddenly turned to Goku with a look of concern.

"Whoa," he said. "Where did the old guy get all that from?"

"I dunno," Goku commented. "His ki always felt pretty dirty, but it never seems like he was holding his power back any."

"It feels like his ki has topped off now," Trunks observed. He addressed Goku again. "Hey, I think he might actually be stronger than Pan, now. Should we go, and…?"

"No," Goku said with unusual firmness. "Pan's still got a shot at this. Let's let her handle it."

"Well, alright," Trunks said, blinking once or twice. "I hope you're right."

_Me too,_ Goku thought to himself. _Alright Pan, it's now or never…_

* * *

Pan had never been hit that hard before in her life. Sure, she'd taken plenty of high-speed, low-power blows during training sessions with Grandpa and Oob, in her match with Vegeta at the tournament, and all that. But to receive an actual full force, nothing held back, punch from an angered enemy in a potentially life-or-death battle was something entirely new to her, and it sucked.

She rubbed her face where Zatar's blow had landed while picking herself up as quickly as she could. She shook some sand out of her hair, and in the process, barely glimpsed Zatar approaching in time to avoid him. From down on all fours she vaulted herself upwards, narrowly dodging Zatar's hammer-like downward punch. It made impact against the ground with unusually little sound, but kicking up a burst of sand and creating a sizable shockwave.

The shaking ground knocked the still weakened Regano off his feet, and he landed on his rear against the sand. As he likewise tried to recover, he couldn't help but continue to gaze in horror at Zatar's new appearance. The almost deceptively frail-looking old man he'd grown up with had been twisted into a horrendous and monstrous figure by all the power he'd forced upon himself.

The newly manifested dark purple aura embodying his power was wrapped around and seemed to ooze from him almost as though it were a sludgy liquid. His thin build was still at all evident in only a few spots, otherwise now lined with an unnatural amount of muscle along his torso and extremities. The added bulk had caused his upper robes to tear off, leaving the scrapped ends to blow around in both the seaside breeze. His beard and the ring of hair encircling his bald scalp were energized and stood on end, and his eyes were wide open and narrow-pupiled. Not once since he'd transformed had Regano seen him blink, and now, for the first time, he also spoke.

"Decades' worth of power stored away," he stated demeaningly to Pan, his voice strained and gravelly, almost seeming to echo. "Being wasted on a mere child. The mere notion is infuriating."

He rushed forward, charging at Pan with most of his body high up and both arms reeled back, posed as though to tackle her. She predictably jumped off to one side to avoid him, but that's exactly what Zatar wanted. He reached out with his right hand as he nearly passed by her, and managed to catch her by the ankle. He didn't give her time to react before he stopped, planted his own footing, and slammed her bodily against the ground. Zatar easily swung her back and forth like a rag doll a few times, beating her against the sand, before spinning around once and heaving her away.

She streaked through the air just above the ground, displacing air, sand, and then water before she collided head-first with a small cluster of boulders just off the shoreline. The rocks shattered apart as her momentum was firmly and decisively canceled out from the impact, and most of the debris from them fell down upon and around her. Zatar watched for a moment to make sure she wasn't getting back up, before turning around and once again focusing on Regano.

"You!" Regano did the closest thing he could to screaming at him. "You killed her!"

"What of it?" Zatar growled. "You'll be joining her momentarily. Besides, in a way, this is better for you now," he clenched a fist as he walked. "Your death will be mercifully quick. I have so much power at the moment, that I doubt I could hold back enough to torture you even if I tried."

Regano began to back away, but Zatar wanted him right where he was. The overpowered old man pushed out a single palm, and a wave of invisible ki made impact with the young prince. Regano was knocked back down to the ground, as the wind was knocked out of him and he was rendered helpless again.

"And despite your fears to the contrary, you'll be leaving Planet Koum in good hands," he continued to preach as he stood over Regano. "Once I've used the Earthling's Dragon Balls to restore my youth and vitality, I'll be perfectly suited to rule. I'll lead Koum into its rightful place as a galactic power, escaping the bonds of our own world and bursting outwards like a-"

"Kamehameha!"

Before he could even wonder that that word meant, Zatar was suddenly further interrupted. A fierce blue stream of energy slammed into him from behind, pushing him away from Regano and driving him into the cliff face opposite of the beach. He was momentarily dazed, but easily recovered after a moment, pushing away a few rocks as he stood up. The unexpected blast had dealt him only a few minor scrapes, and his senses were still more than effective enough to easily track its source.

Pan was evidently back in the fight, standing a bit lop-sided atop the debris which had abruptly blanketed her only a minute before, her hands still cupped together from launching the attack. She was obviously much worse off for the wear compared to Zatar, with her clothes now somewhat tattered around the edges and a noticeably bleeding wound visible on her forehead where she'd collided with the rock. She was panting and wobbling, still dizzy from both the attack as well as her own quick and desperate effort to keep Regano safe.

"You're certainly tenacious," Zatar observed. "Something else Saiyans are known for. Apparently I won't be allowed to continue until you're firmly dealt with."

With that, he suddenly burst forward, kicking up even more sand and water as he closed the distance between himself and Pan at an alarming rate. She tried to get out of dodge, but was still too woozy to move quickly enough. Zatar swung and connected a powerful uppercut blow to Pan's stomach. She gasped in pain as she lost her breath, and didn't get to recover it before Zatar's unyielding assault continued. He began a violent flurry of blows, driving her backwards as he landed an assortment of punches on her from all angles. It only lasted a moment, but Pan felt like she'd been fighting for a week straight when he finally relented. She was still barely on her feet when Zatar reached out and grasped her face, picked her up, and threw her to one side again.

Pan tumbled against the water once or twice this time, before she was abruptly halted as her back slammed into a single large boulder sitting some distance out upon the water-blanketed sandbars. She bounced off of it and was in mid air only for a split second before Zatar was on her again. He slammed a hand against her throat, violently pressing her against the rock.

"Since you're too hardy to be finished in a single blow," he stated. "I'll have to take the time to choke the life out of you, bit by bit. I'm willing, if it means you'll stay down this time."

"No!" Regano's voice suddenly rang out, and he appeared behind Zatar. He had regained his weapon from the battle with Quint, and jumped up with it in the air over his head. With all the strength he could muster, he brought the axe-like bladed end down to bear against Zatar's head. It broke.

Regano somewhat clumsily landed on the ground, and glanced back and forth between his busted weapon and its attempted target in shock. Zatar decided to turn and give him a look at the front of his head, which wore an annoyed glare. With a small grunt, Zatar released a small outward shockwave of ki. It made impact with both Pan and Regano, only further intensifying their suffering. Regano was knocked silly and thrown backwards, and Pan was pressed even harder against the rock.

She gripped and clawed at Zatar's hand as he maintained his solid grip, but she had neither the leverage or raw power to escape it. New cracks started to form along the boulder's surface as the crazed and doped-up elderly warrior pushed against her throat, and if it weren't for her naturally tougher demi-Saiyan body, she'd likely have succumbed to one or the other already. As it stood, she could already feel herself slipping into unconsciousness, which she would likely not wake up from anytime soon.

Regano was still knocked for a loop after Zatar's retaliation for his attempt to assist her. Worst of all, Trunks and Grandpa Goku were nowhere to be seen or sensed. Did they not realize she was in trouble? Were they still asleep, with the powers at play being so miniscule compared to theirs that her peril simply flew under their radar? Did poor Gill even make it back to the ship to wake them?

Her mind flashed back to earlier that night, when she was resting in the theater. Was it alright like this? She'd tried her best, after all, and even if she lost and… well, died, Goku and Trunks would be able to easily step in and beat this old creep instead. Plus, this would be her first time dying, as morbid as it was to keep a mental checklist for that sort of thing. A simple chat with Shenlong back on Earth is all it would take to restore her to life, and in the end it wouldn't really matter.

Right?

At that moment, through squinted and strained eyes, she glanced outward past Zatar's hulking form. She glimpsed Regano, who had managed to regain some amount of consciousness. He likewise looked upward, and their eyes met. His face was plastered with despair and helplessness, as he again struggled to pick himself back up.

"Pan," he groaned, before falling over again. "No…"

"Pests, both of you," Zatar grumbled. He reached his free arm out behind him, and pointed a palm towards Regano. His hand began to glow as energy charged up within it, preparing a ki blast that would unquestionably kill Regano on the spot.

No.

No, this wasn't good enough. None of it was. She couldn't just settle down and let things happen to her. Whether that meant facing imminent death of herself or her loved ones, or just settling for a boring and lazy life, it made no difference. There was only one option, and that was to get stronger. To get as strong as she could, as quickly as she could. But that wasn't something that she could just sit around and expect to happen on its own, either. She had to _make_ it happen.

That was it. That was her motivation. Something, somehow, within that moment of emotional epiphany combined with her fading outer senses drawing her focus inward, caused things to "click" for Pan. Just like that, as if by instinct, she could finally pull it off. She could finally execute the precious special technique that her grandfather had spent the last month imparting to her.

She drew as deep a breath as she could muster, and let out a shout.

"Kaio-Ken!"

* * *

_"Kaio-what?"_

_ It was about eight in the morning, and with the crew now nearly a full day's trip away from Imegga, Goku and Pan were finally beginning to settle back into routine. Here in the ship's gravity room, Goku had not even opted to turn up the Gs yet, instead deciding to start by filling Pan in on their next training objective._

_ "The Kaio-Ken," Goku reiterated. "It's an old technique I used to use a lot, back before I was a Super Saiyan myself. It's tricky to learn and pull off, but with enough practice I think you can do it." He pointed at her. "Plus, I think usin' it might help prepare you better for being a Super Saiyan."_

_ "What does it do?" Pan asked, glancing at her hand. "Let me punch planets in half?"_

_ "Naw," he said. "It's really useful though. Here, I'll show you." He moved a few paces away from Pan and gave a slight grunt. Pan's senses were jolted as Goku released the entirety of his power in his normal state. A trace white aura began to fluctuate around him._

_ "Okay, it's been a while since I used this, but you never really forget." He grinned at her. "Now, pay attention and feel what happens to my power…"_

* * *

She felt it. In the span of a heartbeat, her power instantly doubled. It was an amazing feeling, seeming to both tire and energize her at the same time, much to her surprise. Zatar was likewise startled by the sudden outburst when his seemingly helpless prey was suddenly enveloped in a violent bright red aura. The expanding force from its burst into existence was overwhelming, causing the accursed boulder of pain to outright shatter and the calf-deep tide around it to be pushed up and away in a veritable explosion of water and wet sand.

Before this torrent could even fall back down, there was a sudden thunderous sound of impact, and Zatar came flying out backwards from within it. He bore a brand-new forming bruise on his chin, the result of Pan utilizing her moment of drastically boosted raw power to deliver an upward kick to his chin at speeds too fast for him to react to. The power-bloated old punching bag now had his turn to make a hard landing, face-first for the second time into the water, which decided to insult him by throwing a small wave from Pan's burst across him.

He sputtered and groaned as he pushed up and turned around to look back at Pan. She was now standing again, her fighting spirit regained as she looked down at her hand and clenched a fist in confidence. She looked back over at Zatar and practically spat at him.

"Like I said," she proclaimed. "You suck."

Zatar yelled in utmost frustration, and in one powerful motion he generated and threw a ki blast at her. But just as quickly as he did, Pan reacted. She whipped out the visibly powerful aura of the Kaio-Ken again, this time easily as though it were now instinct. But she actually darted forward through the air, facing the blast head-on before sharply angling around it. Before it even reached the spot she'd been standing on, she was right in front of Zatar, and he actually felt the crippling punch to his stomach before he even saw her there.

He crouched and leaned over in pain, gritting his teeth and murmuring curses of pain. Even further enraged, he recovered somewhat and raised both hands over his head. He brought both muscle-bound fists arcing down in a twin-hammered blow straight at Pan, but not nearly quickly enough. With another Kaio-Ken burst, she met his arms halfway, parrying them both with her own before driving both of her best feet forward for a double kick to his face.

"You know **why** you suck?!" She yelled at him as she delivered another quick flurry of Kaio-Ken-powered blows to his torso. "Because you're greedy and selfish. You only value your strength so you can hurt and control people! Just like that Freeza jerk you worshiped so much!"

Angered at the slur of his former liege just as much as by his own rebounded powerlessness, Zatar's eyes were wide and blank in rage as he swung wildly trying to catch her. But it was no use, as Pan used the Kaio-Ken again to burst around his hulking frame in a full upwards spiral and then slam an airborne roundhouse kick against his head.

"Real warriors train to improve themselves, not because they think they're already better than everyone else!" She landed on the ground some way from Zatar, and cupped both her hands off to her right side, preparing to launch another Kamehameha attack like before.

"Little ingrate!" Zatar practically screamed as he backed up to create more distance. He then readied himself to preempt Pan's attack, crouching and holding both his hands close in front of his forehead as he rapidly charged up ki. "You're a waste! A weakling! You know nothing of true strength!"

"I know something _you_ don't," Pan said, as a mass of blue ki began to form between her hands. "I know that you're never stronger than when protecting someone you love!"

This last insult to his ideas just cheesed off Zatar even more. With a guttural scream, he threw his arms forward and launched his attack. A single wide, yellow mass of ki barreled straight towards Pan, threatening to engulf her and take out half the island with her if it hit its mark.

But that wasn't going to happen. As strong as the attack was, Pan could tell that a Kamehameha boosted by the Kaio-Ken would be enough to counter it. But there was another option, one that both did and didn't "play it safe." She could feel something more, begging to be tapped into, like when a runner finds a second wind for a final sprint to the finish line. It would be risky to try, especially after only just pulling off the technique to begin with, but… what the hell.

"Kaio-Ken times THREE!"

The now-familiar crimson energy again burst into form around her, though manifesting even larger as her energy was this time tripled instead of doubled. A not entirely unexpected wave of pain from the stress of such an unpracticed extreme washed over her, but she pushed herself through it and didn't waste her chance.

"KAMEHAMEHA!"

She drove both her hands forward, and let loose the wave. It streaked forward, the sheer force of unleashing it actually pushing Pan back a few meters and tearing up the ground around her. It encountered Zatar's blast halfway between them, and the meeting of attacks went exactly as one would expect. The Kamehameha pierced through Zatar's attack as if it weren't even there, completely canceling out its energy in the process. It rocketed forward completely unopposed, and hit its unlucky target dead-on.

"Nooo-"

Zatar barely had time to even comprehend what had happened before the blue blast of boom made impact. It both engulfed and pushed against him, burning at his skin and inflicting severe concussive force upon every inch of his body. Because of the difference in his and Pan's heights, Zatar was carried back into the air by the attack, far off into the sky beyond the boundaries of the island. The volatile but short-lived energy of the Kamehameha fizzled out after a few seconds, letting him drop into the ocean off to the South.

Regano and Pan both remained still for a short time. The former out of shock and awe, and the latter from a combination of making sure her opponent was truly out of the picture and being too sore to move. But after a few uncomfortably silent moments, she took a deep sigh of relief and allowed herself to move. That is, she plopped backwards onto the sand. Regano rose to his feet and hobbled over to her as quickly as he could.

"Pan," he exclaimed. "That was incredible!"

"Heheh," she chuckled weakly in response. "Sorry, I'm a bit stronger than I let on when we sparred before…"

"You just saved my planet," Regano assured her. "My pride is a small price to pay for that." He then looked her over and noticed her sorry state. "Are you seriously hurt?"

"Eh," Pan would have shrugged, but, you know. "I hurt myself more than Zatar did. Took that technique to boost my power a little too far, and now I can't move…"

"Well, I guess it's my turn to help, then."

"Eeek!" Pan was slightly startled as Regano reached down and hoisted her up, pulling one arm up over his shoulder. She blushed a bit from the proximity and contact as Regano started hobbling his way down the beach.

"I could fly, but I'm pretty shaky myself, and I'm afraid I'd drop you." Regano stated this, but he immediately dropped her anyway. Goku, Trunks, and Gill hadn't meant to alarm him when they materialized out of thin air right next to the victorious pair, but they did nonetheless.

"What? Huh?" Regano panicked momentarily, thinking Zatar had returned for a second before he recognized these newcomers.

"Grandpa," Pan exclaimed from her rediscovered spot on the ground. "I did it!"

"You sure did," Goku happily addressed her. "That was pretty touch and go for a while, but I knew you could pull it off."

"Gililil!" Gill cheered. "Pan, safe! Gill glad!"

"Sorry for the wait," Trunks explained. "We had some other passengers to dart around with once things had cooled down."

"Now it's you guys' turn," Goku said, extending a hand. "All aboard!"

* * *

Pan blinked and scrunched up her face as she resisted the warm and bright dawn sunlight's best attempts to rouse her from sleep. Her attention was only fully won when she realized she wasn't in her usual bed. Or even in her spaceship-usual bed.

She sat up and glanced around, trying to figure out where she was. The first thing she noticed was that, despite still being a little sore, she could at least move again thanks to a decent night's rest. So that was good. Her surroundings were that of a spacious and rustic bedroom, simply but comfortably furnished with little else in the way of luxury besides the appropriately king-size bed she sat upon. The wide and open door out to a hallway was to Pan's left, and off to her right was an even wider portal leading to a small balcony outside, from where the morning sunlight permeated into the room. Sitting at a large wooden desk between Pan and the outside was Regano, backlit by the dawn as he evidently worked with some papers. But now he had noticed Pan's rise from sleep, and his attention instantly focused upon her.

"You're awake!" He stated the obvious, shifting his chair some to face her. Pan immediately noticed that he was bandaged up in key areas, then that she was the same way, and she recalled some foggy memories of Koumian medics patching them both up after the battle the prior night.

"Where am I?" She inquired, still glancing around.

"My bedroom, back at the palace," he answered, then noticed the suspicious look she promptly gave in return. "Don't worry," he chuckled. "While you've spent the night sleeping, I've been far too busy running around taking care of business to even get near my bed."

"If you say so," Pan teased, then cocked her head. "What business?"

"Cleanup after the battle, of course," Regano said. "It's mostly been about rounding up Quint's defeated forces. We don't have enough prisons to hold them all, so for the most part the ones that survived are simply being stuffed back onto their ships and kicked off the planet." He smiled. "With three out of five versions of their leader dead, and the other two missing, they're being quite cooperative."

"What about the old guy?"

"Zatar is…still alive," Regano told her. "He was recovered, unconscious, from the shore of another small island after you defeated him." He leaned back in his chair a bit, his face appearing pensive and a little sad. "But he's entirely crippled. On the surface his injuries seem minor, but all that power he forced upon himself has burned him out. His body's been left as barely anything more than a shell with a heartbeat."

He sighed. "A part of me is relieved that any more uprising attempts are out of the question for him now," he explained, his voice somber. "But another part is still having a hard time swallowing it all. To think that the man who helped raise me would turn out to be a traitor. I wish I'd have seen it coming sooner. Things wouldn't have had to come this far."

"It's not your fault," Pan said as she scooted over to sit on the edge of the bed. "Not everyone ends up being what they look like on the surface, you know?"

"Speak for yourself," Regano's smile returned as he praised her. "I wish I'd known I had a handful of secret weapons at my disposal all along. I have Trunks and your grandfather to thank for my family's safety, and the capitol's guards won't stop giving glowing reports of how you helped them."

"Well, it's not like we'd just sit by and do nothing," Pan said, blushing a bit.

"You don't need to be so humble," Regano insisted. "There's no doubt Koum would have succumbed to the invasion if not for your presence." He stood from his chair, faced Pan, and actually bowed to her. "I can't truly express how grateful I am, to all of you."

"Hey, come on," Pan said. "You're a prince, aren't you"

"Right now, my position as prince is nothing more than to represent the people," Regano assured her. "But, as an individual here and now, there's a special way I want to personally thank you, Pan." With that, he walked the short distance from his desk and leaned down towards the bed.

Pan blushed even more. "What are you…"

"Pardon me," he said, as rather than initiate any sort of implied hanky-panky, he grasped the underside of his mattress. Pan was displaced slightly as he lifted it upwards and reached underneath. He just as quickly laid it back down, and presented her with what he had rummaged for. Within his hand sat the coveted Dragon Ball, its two internal black stars circling around each other within its core.

"For you," Regano said, sitting down on the bed beside her. "After all you've done, it's the least I can do in return."

Pan smiled as she reached out and took the ball, then carefully examined it. She sighed, the smile momentarily fading as she spoke to Regano.

"You know, I've really enjoyed my time here," she said. "Part of why I came out into space with Trunks and Grandpa was just to get away from home and have a vacation, and spending a week on a beautiful planet like this was the perfect getaway."

She kept idly gazing at the Dragon Ball, though not really paying much attention to it. "But another part of why I came was to train. Not just for its own sake, but to help clear my head and… I dunno, find myself, I guess." She looked at Regano and smiled again. "What I did when I fought Zatar was a really big breakthrough for me. It's just one step on the way to something bigger, but before now I thought it all seemed hopeless.

"I wasn't just talking big when I said that to Zatar, either. About being strong when protecting someone you love? So… you know, there's that too," her blush returned as she somewhat eloquently dodged the direct confession. "But after all this, I want to get even stronger. To take what I've done and see just how much further I can push myself. That's not something I can do here, so," she finally dropped the bomb. "I'm sorry, but I can't stay with you."

Both of them were silent for a moment as Regano let it soak in. But then he smiled in return.

"I understand," Regano told her. He leaned over and granted her a small peck on the cheek. "I wish you luck, and like I said before, I hope you won't forget about me."

A surprised and red-faced Pan rubbed the point of impact. "Uh… But I guess a visit now and then wouldn't be out of the question…"

"It certainly wouldn't," Regano agreed. He then gently pushed at her arm as he crawled past her onto his bed. "Now if you'll excuse me, sleeping beauty, it's finally my turn for some rest."

* * *

After quite a few hours, the golden light of Koum's dawn had super-transformed itself by means of planetary rotation into normal daylight, and ultimately again into the warm pink-orangey glow of the late afternoon. A landscape which less than a day ago had been the site of panicked battle found itself returned to peace, and it now bid its farewells to the visiting unlikely heroes who had landed upon it and kept its peace from being snuffed out.

"So long, and thanks for all the fish!" Goku called out from the ship's entrance hatch, ruining the touching setting with a corny line. "Oh, and the Dragon Ball. That's pretty important too, I guess."

"I'll get the pre-launch procedures started," Trunk called down in turn as he also floated up towards the open hatch. "Don't take too long, Pan."

"I won't," she responded from the ground as both of her peers disappeared into the ship. She turned back around to where a small group of their gracious hosts had gathered to say goodbye. Orris had limped his way out with some assistance from the noticeably less irritable Silva. Regano obviously stood among them, but little Prika was front and foremost, running up and hugging Pan.

"Big sister, do you really have to leave?"

"Yeah," Pan knelt down to her level and smiled at her. "I'm sorry, but I'll come back and play with you someday soon. So take care of Regano until I do, okay?"

"Alright…" Prika still seemed disappointed, but accepted it and trudged her way back over to her brother's side. Pan likewise addressed them all.

"Thanks for everything, guys," she said.

"Thank US?" Silva almost seemed insulted. "After all you've done? We had a combination uprising and invasion brewing right under our noses."

"And they would have gotten away with it, too, if not for you meddling kids," Orris finished his wife's thought. "Seriously, thank you. Regano may not have gotten a wife like he wanted, but I think the safety of our home is a pretty good substitute."

"I wouldn't count us out yet," Regano joked. He turned straight to Pan and turned on his trademark charm one last time. "My dear Pan, if your admiration for me ever becomes even a tenth of mine for you, then I hope you'll return to me someday."

Pan gave off a nervous giggle, and waved him off rather nonchalantly. She said goodbye to the group one last time as she flew up and over to the ship's hatch, within which she likewise vanished. Only a minute later, the awkward-looking craft powered up and blasted off into the sky.

Regano and his entourage remained where they were, somberly watching their precious guests arc up into the sky until they vanished from sight altogether. It was still another moment or two before they started walking away.

"So," Regano piped up. "I hope you're not going to be as much of a pain about the whole marriage tradition thing as Zatar was," he said to Orris.

"I've got my own family in the works to worry about," Orris chipperly responded. "You keep on doing whatever you want."

"It'll be hard to top Pan, though," Silva remarked. "In more ways than one."

"Obviously," Regano agreed. "I do have to admit, though, I'm a bit freaked out by how much stronger than me she really is…"

Thankfully far from its passengers' earshot by now, the small Earth vessel streaked past Planet Koum's moon, making its way off to the stars and soon to continue its spiraling flight plan through the North Galaxy. Goku and Trunks were still in the cockpit, chatting between themselves about the past week, but Pan had taken off on her own once the initial takeoff was over. She found herself in the observation lounge up top, where she'd idly watched the brilliant view of Koum grow steadily smaller as the ship sped away from it. Glancing down through the portal to the main deck below, she noticed that Gill had departed the cockpit as well, and was aimlessly hopping around.

"Psst," she subdued her voice as she called out to him. "Gill! C'mere!"

"Gilililil…" He happily complied, retracting his legs and floating up to meet her. "Hello, Pan! Gill glad Pan stay with Gill!"

She beamed at the little 'bot's affection. "Of course," she said. But she then became more serious for a moment, glancing back down below to make sure nobody was watching them before she spoke to Gill again. "Say… could you print out a picture for me?"


End file.
